These discussions of stop and frisk give me memories of English 110H (The H stands for Hipster) with Helena Ribeiro…
Much like the other topics we’ve been discussing with our group projects, the Stop and Frisk policy in NYC brings up a whole range of subissues relating to this one rule. The obvious two that come to mind are race and safety. As the readings showed, a disproportionate amount of African American and Latinos were stop and frisked (used as a verb). Most of these actions took place in lower income, traditionally predominantly black and latino neighborhoods. As a fan of urban hip hop like A$AP Rocky, Nas, Onyx, and Wu Tang Clan, (kinda.) this is more than just a political issue. It’s a huge social issue, and possibly a psychological issue if we looked at the psyches of those affected by stop and frisk. The argument I saw the article as making was that the disproportionate numbers of stop and frisks led to very little actual results, with 1.9% actually caught with having a weapon. While the stop and frisks themselves may be inconclusive in finding something illegal, there are more implications for the city, and the people witnessing these frisks. I personally feel that although the results may not show it, they add to helping the senses and feelings of New Yorkers.
Like education, security brought on by police, in particular the stop and frisks policies, contributes to a better New York, from the way I see it. The value of security, or the feeling of safety, in a sense, is unquantifiable. Although numbers regarding crimes can be used as a good judge of other crimes, for the person riding the subway, or walking through a “sketchy” neighborhood, he or she feels safe with the watchful eye of the police. While the stop and frisk numbers are extremely unsuccessful, the actual effects of stop and frisk are far greater. Yes, certain races are more likely to get frisked. In actuality, it should make them less likely to commit a crime with the police on their back. The third article spoke of England and stop and frisk as part of their law. I haven’t really seen problems there regarding this matter. Could this just be a race issue? I feel that with stop and frisk, the police are doing what they’re supposed to do. Like Demi Lovato singing, it’s the duty for policemen to “protect” us. In the end, I’d rather have police officers looking out for potential criminals instead of hanging out by cars, waiting to ticket them when their meter expires. amirite?
Meowwww.
