Current Events > New research says UK police are institutionally racist. Police reject claims.

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Greater Manchester Police has been described as institutionally racist by the chairwoman of a panel scrutinising the force's record.

Elizabeth Cameron suggested disproportionate use of police powers went "beyond unconscious bias and into the realms of racism".

A report into race equality issues at GMP found officers were four times more likely to use force on black people.

Chief Constable Stephen Watson rejected the claim.

However, he admitted it was likely the force could feasibly employ "somebody who behaves in a racist way".

But he insisted they would be "rooted and booted out" of the force.

The 2021 Achieving Race Equality Report, which was commissioned by Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, examined the use of police powers across different groups.

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It found black people were four times more likely to have force used against them in comparison to white people.

It also revealed they were 2.8 times more likely to be arrested, 5.7 times more likely to be Tasered and 5.3 times more likely to have been stopped and searched.

The report also found officers were more likely to refer to the physique of black people when justifying a decision to use force against them, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Ms Cameron said this showed some members of the force were relying on "racist tropes".

She added: "It lends itself towards what I call the institutional racism that exists, and it's undeniable."

Elizabeth Cameron said things "will get worse if we don't address what is here"

"Probably every black person from those communities has some form of video on their phone right now that they could show of community members who have been unfairly jostled by the police, aggressively treated," she added.

The report also said people from ethnic groups, such as Chinese or Arab, were more than five times more likely to be arrested, four times more likely to have force used against them, as well as almost eight times more likely to be Tasered.

Mr Watson said the use of stop and search and Tasers were "effective tools in our efforts to keep communities safe".

But he said he recognised "when not done properly, their use can divide and undermine confidence in policing".

"It is important we explain our actions and be directly accountable for them," he added.

He also said action had been taken to "recruit new officers who truly represent the diversity of Greater Manchester".

The report found the number of black officers, staff and PCSOs had slightly increased since 2014, from 93 to 111, while the number of Asian people employed by the force had more than doubled in the same period, from 259 to 592.

Mr Burnham said the force was "entering a new era and it needs to be one defined by greater openness and more accountability to the communities it serves".

He admitted the report would "cause concern in a number of communities" but said he would work closely with the force and the GM Race Equality Panel "to improve the situation".

Full Article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-57982273.amp



The inability of police to even acknowledge the problem exists demonstrates how bad the problem is to me

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Well, the police reject it, so I'm sure the new stop and search laws won't be used disproportionately against certain kinds of people.

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Of course they would.

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1. who researched
2. are they reliable
3. who are their influences
4. who do they influence
5. where did the funding come from
6. does the funding source have any "horse in the race"

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Naysaspace posted...

1. who researched

Elizabeth Cameron

2. are they reliable

Yes

3. who are their influences

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham

4. who do they influence

No one. The police rejected the data outright

5. where did the funding come from

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham

6. does the funding source have any "horse in the race"

Yes, it would be in their interests if the report said there was no evidence of racism

It said the opposite.


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people keep blaming cops. It's the society the cops were raised in.

It's like blaming politicians. It's not the politicians, it's the American people that are a problem

Winrawr posted...

people keep blaming cops. It's the society the cops were raised in.

It's like blaming politicians. It's not the politicians, it's the American people that are a problem

Errr...society made them racist and abusive of power?

something something we investigated ourselves something something

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