Institutional Racism:

• One argument for the over-representation of some ethnic minority groups in crime statistics is institutional racism

• Policies and procedures designed to place one or more groups at a disadvantage in society

• Extends from education through to crime with many excluded in education going on to be victimised by police

Over-representation in statistics:

• Black citizens 9 times more likely to be stopped and searched according to the 2019 CSEW

• Arrest rates are higher for black and mixed-ethnicity citizens

• Higher representation of BAME groups in prison population than in society (16% compared to 27%)

Canteen Culture:

• Waddington (1999) - police have a subculture when off-duty of stereotyping groups and individuals based on social characteristics

• This informs their behaviours when at work and leads to making decisions based on their preconceptions

• Less discretion is shown when tackling those who negatively stereotype

Legal Recognition:

• The first legal recognition of institutional racism in the police force was the trial of Mangrove 9 in 1970

• Further recognition came with the MacPherson Report in 1999 which made 70 recommendations to tackle institutional racism in Metropolitan police following the murder of Stephen Lawrence

Lammy Review:

• Labour MP David Lammy highlighted the over-representation of ethnic minority citizens in crime statistics

• 25% of adult prisoners and 41% of youth offenders were from ethnic minorities *

• 14% of the population in 2017 were from ethnic minority backgrounds

Links to education:

• Black and mixed-ethnicity pupils are most likely to be temporarily excluded from school (5.56% and 5.89%)

• Also had the highest rates of permanent exclusion (0.28 for black Caribbean and 0.27 for mixed white and black
  Caribbean

• The School Exclusion Project (2015) suggested that 85% of prisoners had been excluded from school

Evaluations of Institutional Racism:

• Following the MacPherson Report, the Metropolitan Police BAME Officers Association suggested the force was institutionally racist

• Police act upon reports from the public in arresting suspects - however, this does, not account for stop-and-search statistics

• Role of media in creating moral panics which leads to stereotypes of behaviour that inform police actions