Affirmative Action in Policing

Throughout the past 150 years, the police and many of the communities they serve have struggled with a history of tension and conflict, often fueled by allegations that officers target and harass racial minorities while failing to root out racist attitudes and practices within their own ranks. Recent highprofile cases such as the beating of Rodney King in Los Angeles and the assault on Abner Louima in New York have served only to heighten concerns.

Internally, it remains true that most American law enforcement agencies do not accurately reflect the communities that they serve. The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimated that as of 1997, only 6% of all fulltime sworn police department employees were women, 12% were African American, 8% were Hispanic, and 2% were from other ethnic backgrounds. Comparatively, women comprise 46.5% of the U.S. population. African Americans or Black Americans comprise more than 12% of the population, and individuals of Hispanic or Latino origin represent more than 12% of the population. Americans who identify as members of other ethnic groups comprise just under 10% of the population according to the Census Bureau. A 10-year comparison of police departments shows that from 1990 to 2000, the percentage of Hispanic officers rose from 9% to 14%, black officers rose from 18% to 20%, and women increased from 12% to 16%.

There are numerous reasons why police agencies may benefit from hiring officers who are members of groups that are underrepresented in the department. Evidence suggests that members of certain groups have unique skills that can enhance police services. For example, some studies contend that women are less likely to use excessive force, or that language barriers within the community can be broken by hiring members of newly arrived immigrant groups, according to the National Crime Prevention Council. There are also legal reasons why police agencies may choose to embrace diversity. The Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 prohibits bias in hiring based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Furthermore, the Act allows [Page 5]individuals to sue employers who are engaging in discriminatory behavior. Prior to 1972, employment discrimination was already illegal, but this law provided individuals with an avenue to challenge unfair practices. The new legislation also pushed law enforcement agencies to reevaluate their own recruitment, hiring, and evaluation procedures. Legal challenges could be both financially and psychologically costly to police agencies and communities, and enhancing diversity served as a potential deterrent to future legal challenges.

Although all of these factors are important, for many police observers, the primary incentive for hiring diverse officers is the added effectiveness that some attribute to the maintenance of a police department that reflects the community. This is so, they argue, because the police must rely on community members to report crimes, provide information, and support the maintenance of public safety. Because a key element of partnership building is establishing trust among the participants, the failure to maintain positive relations with diverse communities and the limitation of diversity of culture or thought can only be harmful to the organization's mission. The importance of this need becomes more obvious in light of the most recent national census showing that between 1990 and 2000, the total population of the United States increased by 13.2%, and whereas the majority white population—representing 75.1% of the total—increased by 5.9% during this period, the minority African American and Hispanic communities increased by more than 15% and 50%, respectively. If these Census Bureau predictions prove to be accurate, within the space of a few generations, no single racial or ethnic group will hold a clear majority in the United States. Instead, the country will be made up of a collection of significant “minorities,” namely black, white, and Hispanic. Unless steps are taken to ensure that police departments across the country better represent and serve the needs of all of these communities, continuing demographic changes will likely leave the police dangerously out of touch, and furthermore make policing by consent—an essential part of a free and democratic society—increasingly difficult.

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