The US media often mentions Latinos in the news when discussing drug trafficking and crimes related to crossing US borders. In addition, according to the stereotype in the United States, African American men are dangerous criminals. These particular groups of the population are represented in greater numbers among those arrested for committing crimes (Gabbidon & Greene, 2018). The negative perceptions of black and Hispanic people exist in society, and it is so not only because of mass media and stereotypic images; these perceptions are confirmed by statistical data.
Taking FBI report for 2018 into account, it turns out that there is a connection between crime rates and race. In 2018, there were a total of 6,570 murders, 3,011 (45.8%) of which were committed by whites, and 3,177 (48.4%) by blacks (Federal Bureau of Investigation, US Department of Justice, 2018). The killings are most often intraracial: of the 3,315 murdered whites, 80.8% were killed by white people, and 15.5% by black; of the 2,925 killed black people, 88.9% were murdered by blacks and 8.0% by whites (Federal Bureau of Investigation, US Department of Justice, 2018).
Concerning the proportions of the US population, white people comprise 63.4%, African Americans constitute 13.4%, and Hispanic people – 15.3% of the total population (Federal Bureau of Investigation, US Department of Justice, 2018). It turns out that black people, who are only 13.4%, are responsible for almost half of all murders.
There is a widespread perception among the American public, especially law enforcement officials, that non-white people, African Americans, Hispanics, and other minorities, commit the most crimes. The statistical data confirms that this image is not fictional. Moreover, there are not only murders but also burglaries and other crimes correlating with race factor. It is essential to note that black people, accounting for 13.4% of the population, are allegedly responsible for almost 50% of crimes. It is most likely that the higher crime rate among the African American and Latin American people is linked to their worse economic situation.
References
Federal Bureau of Investigation, US Department of Justice. (2018). Crime in the U.S. 2018. Web.
Gabbidon, S. L., & Greene, H. T. (2018). Race and crime. Sage Publications.