Profiling, Racial

Racial profiling is one of the most controversial techniques of surveillance, and debates about its effectiveness, legality, and fairness have been increasingly fierce since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. This entry defines racial profiling, describes its uses and provides examples of such profiling, includes reasons used in defense of racial profiling as well as points debating its success, and concludes with an examination of the ethical and legal concerns of racial profiling as they have arisen in the fields of security and medicine.

Defining Racial Profiling

Racial profiling can be defined as the systematic association of sets of racial or quasi-racial characteristics with certain other traits, which are then used as a basis for making decisions, usually about how to treat people. Racial profiling ...

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