The Victimization and Disparate Treatment of Racial and Ethnic Minorities

Introduction

The relationship between racial and ethnic minorities and the American criminal justice system has garnered national and international attention in recent years. Perhaps one of the most notable examples is illustrated by the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old Black teenager. Martin was walking home from a nearby convenience store when he was spotted by George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old Hispanic man. Zimmerman called 911 to report Martin’s “suspicious” behavior and informed the dispatcher that he was following Martin in his vehicle. After being told he did not need to follow Martin, Zimmerman ended the phone call. The details of the events that followed are often disputed, but it is believed that Zimmerman continued to follow Martin in his vehicle until Martin began running, at which point Zimmerman exited the vehicle and began following Martin on foot. At approximately 7:17 p.m. on February 26, 2012, Zimmerman shot and killed Martin. Zimmerman told police he shot Martin, who was unarmed, in self-defense and was taken into police custody before being released without charges. The City of Sanford cited Florida’s Stand Your Ground law as reasoning for Zimmerman’s release (Lee, 2013). However, Zimmerman was later charged with second-degree murder on April 11, 2012, and trial proceedings began. On July 13, 2013, Zimmerman was acquitted of both second-degree murder and the lesser charge of manslaughter. This decision sparked debate across the country, with many people believing Martin’s death was the result of racial profiling (Alvarez & Buckley, 2013; Lee, 2013). Zimmerman’s acquittal inspired the creation of the Black Lives Matter organization in 2013, which has helped raise awareness of issues surrounding victimization of Black individuals and the disparate treatment they face within the criminal justice system (Graeff et al., 2014).

In the years since Martin’s death, many similar instances have made headlines. On May 25, 2020, four Minneapolis police officers responded to reports of an alleged forgery in progress. George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, had been accused of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill. The incident, which was caught on video by a 17-year-old bystander, ultimately resulted in Floyd’s death after Officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for over nine minutes. All four officers were fired the following day, and Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter on May 29, 2020. An additional charge of second-degree murder was later added. Shortly after the news of Floyd’s death broke, protests erupted in Minneapolis and across the country as people demanded justice and accountability. Almost a year later, on April 20, 2021, a jury found Chauvin guilty of all charges (Vera & Wolfe, 2021). For many, Chauvin’s conviction represents a step in the right direction and sets a precedent for law enforcement being held accountable in instances of officer-involved deaths resulting from police misconduct.

With the concern for these issues in mind, it is important to remember that Black individuals are not the only racial or ethnic minority who experience disproportionate victimization and disparate treatment within the criminal justice system. Between March of 2020 and February of 2021, a total of 3,795 racially motivated attacks on Asian American were reported to the Stop Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Hate reporting center (Stop AAPI Hate, 2021). Although this number is staggering, it likely represents only a portion of the attacks on Asian Americans during this specified period. Because the Stop AAPI Hate reporting center was not established until March of 2020, they are unable to compare 2020-2021 data to data from previous years to determine if attacks on Asian Americans have increased. However, it is believed that anti-Asian rhetoric stemming from the perception that Asians were responsible for the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused an upswing in such attacks, similar to the increase in attacks against Muslim and Arab Americans following September 11, 2001 (Disha et al., 2011; Stop AAPI Hate, 2021).