Stop + Frisk Ruled Unconstitutional

The Boondocks, by Aaron McGruder

on monday, federal judge Shira Scheindlin ruled that New York City's stop + frisk policy as currently practiced violates the constitutional rights of people of color. she ordered several changes for the NYPD, including public community meetings, body cameras to record officer interactions, and a lawyer to further investigate NYPD's constitutional compliance. though i am skeptical that Judge Scheindlin's ruling by itself will actually reduce police harassment of POC, i appreciated that she explicitly called attention to the fact that POC are disproportionately stopped by NYPD: “Blacks are likely targeted for stops based on a lesser degree of objectively founded suspicion than whites.” In other words, your behavior suddenly looks a lot more suspicious if you happen to be a POC, especially a male POC. Charles M. Blow, a NYT columnist, writes: 

     "At what precise pace should a black man walk to avoid suspicion? And can they ever stop walking away, or running away, and simply stand their ground? Can they become righteously indignant without being fatally wounded?"

Judge Scheindlin's comments on racial profiling contrasted sharply with the recent Zimmerman trial, where race as a factor in Trayvon Martin's death seemed to be discussed only outside of the courtroom. To me, this comes across as a blatant refusal to recognize Zimmerman's personal racial bias as "hard" evidence. Ekow N. Yankah wonders how the trial would have concluded had Martin and Zimmerman switched skin colors ("The Truth About Trayvon"), pointing out that "...race and law cannot be cleanly separated". Yes, the role of race in our society can be multilayered, but prison population numbers seem to make it pretty clear that our current criminal justice system does not work in favor of POC (U.S. Census). in light of these figures, it seems ridiculous to attempt any conversation involving crime and/or cops without acknowledging the role of racism in our society.