Kirkland 1

Sydney Kirkland
Professor Joy McDonald
English 102-13
April 12, 2016
End Favoritism in Legal Systems
Favoritism in the legal systems must end. Persons who show a sense of favoritism must
be punished appropriately. There is absolutely no reason why black people, who make up
only a slither of the population of the United States, inhabit a majority of jails and prisons
(Stanford, 2014). A big cause for this is favoritism. Allowing a white person to receive a
lesser punishment than a black person who committed the same crime is favoritism, and
it is wrong. More times than not, white people will be sentenced to complete community
service, or a lesser crime, while a black has to spend years incarcerated for the same
crime committed (Farbota, 2015).
In all actuality, favoritism is a more polite word for an attitude that has existed for
hundreds of years: racism. Simply, racism is treating a race differently because one
believes that it is inferior to another. Allowing a white person to receive an insignificant
punishment compared to a black person is racism. Judges believe that because whites
have easy access to money and can afford better lawyers they should not be entitled to the
same punishments. I say this because Judges often have at their discretion the option of
reducing a punishment (Farbota, 2015). This is insanity.
This favoritism also relates to how police officers
treat blacks and whites on an everyday basis.
Blacks who have struggled and constantly
encountered oppositions to obtain the success some
have acquired continue to be attacked and harassed
by the police. This is something that has existed for
far too long. Cant a black person who is driving a
foreign luxury car such as a 7 series BMW or a
2015 S550 Mercedes Benz purchase it the same way that a white person can? Are we not
able to work adequate jobs that allow us to buy expensive things? When a white person is
pulled over driving a BMW, there is no question of whether that person has purchased the
car legally or where they have gotten it. The picture on the left shows the percentage of
stop and frisks in New York City by race. According to the picture, blacks along with
other minorities continue to be stopped and frisked by the police in larger percentages
than whites.
How about when a black teenager is seen walking out of the liquor store after purchasing
candy with a hood on police officers for some unknown reason begin to feel threatened?
If a white person were to go to a store late at night in same scenario, I am sure that the

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police officer would have no need to feel threatened. Favoritism here is a cover-up word
for racial profiling. Police officers often make assumptions about blacks based on the
clothing they wear. Trayvon Martin was only a teenager when he was irrationally
murdered. To make it worse, he was unarmed only holding a bag of skittles and an
Arizona Iced Tea.
Favoritism in legal systems must end. Too many lives are being lost because of the
difference in the treatment of blacks and whites. Campaigns such as #BlackLivesMatter
should not have to exist. Equality remains a false reality as blacks continue to suffer for
characteristics they have no control over. Its time that people with occupations to serve
our country do so in a fair way. If not, appropriate disciplinary actions must be
mandated.

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Works Cited
ABC News. ABC News Network, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
"AboutBlack Lives Matter." Black Lives Matter RSS2. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
"Blacks Are 13% of US Population 37.6% of Prisoners and 71% of Shooters in Chicago."
Zero Hedge. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
"'I Can't Breathe': Eric Garner Put in Chokehold by NYPD Officer Video." The
Guardian. Guardian News and Media, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
Farbota, Kim. "Black Crime Rates: What Happens When Numbers Aren't Neutral." The
Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
"Racial Profiling - Latest News, Videos, and Information- NBCNews.com." Racial
Profiling - Latest News, Videos, and Information- NBCNews.com. N.p., n.d. Web.
22 Apr. 2016.
"Stanford Research Suggests Support for Incarceration Mirrors Whites' Perception of
Black Prison Populations." Stanford University. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.
"Stop and Frisk." TheFreeDictionary.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2016.