Diversity includes people and groups of different race, gender, age, sexuality, and other social constructs. Through stereotypes, discrimination, and prejudice, racial bias might be evident based on race or ethnicity. Diversity in law enforcement involves including people of different backgrounds and treating them equally and fairly in recruitment, compensation, promotion, and decision-making. A diverse police force reduces racial bias by building trust and confidence in a police-citizen relationship, increasing transparency and accountability, improving community relations, quick decision-making, and improving perceptions of fairness and impartiality in policing.
To begin with, a diverse law enforcement builds trust and cooperation. Studies have shown that “Police officers rely on information from citizens to identify problems and allocate resources efficiently” (Nanes, 2020, p.580). This cooperation between law enforcement officers and the public helps ensure public safety by reducing prejudice and helping police officers understand what is happening in the neighborhoods and how to mitigate crime. Once the public feels law enforcement officers understand their backgrounds and experiences or that some police officers are from their respective cultures, they report prevalent crimes, collaborate with police officers, and help reduce bias, assumptions, and falsified convictions. Based on a study conducted by (Blauer et al., 2021), the implementation of “The Neighborhood Community Officer Program” situated police officers in communities for three to five years to build trust through “professionalism, cooperation, and partnerships with community members” ( Blauer et al., 2021, p. 6). Effective communication and cooperation reduce racial bias by including all community members, regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, or social status, in helping ensure a safe neighborhood and the implementation of just policing strategies in mitigating crimes.
Another way diversity in law enforcement reduces racial bias is by enhancing transparency, openness, and accountability in policing. To address biased policing practices based on ranks or unique affiliations, diversity ensures there is accountability and oversight in law enforcement. Internal accountability ensures all records of arrests, use of force, discrimination, or racial profiling are entered into the system to reduce lawsuits alongside promoting fair treatment and better police reforms. According to (Modise, 2023), police accountability enhances efficiency, effectiveness, and ethical standards in policing by prioritizing public needs. An accountable police force will help build public trust, credibility, and cooperation, reducing discrimination. Transparency and openness also ensure community involvement, inclusive policies and practices, diverse leadership practices, ease of access to public information by the public, better policing reforms, and building commitment and ethical standards that fight against racial bias and profiling in law enforcement. Furthermore, officers from minority and unrepresented backgrounds might recognize and challenge racial bias, leading to increased accountability and reduced discrimination.
Diverse law enforcement also reduces racial bias by promoting fairness and inclusivity in hiring retention and promoting underrepresented groups. Since most cases of racial discrimination affect Blacks and other indigenous people, representation of these natives in law enforcement helps reduce racial profiling, bias, and discrimination. A study conducted by (Chawla et al., 2023) showed that diversity in hiring Black officers helps in anti-racism efforts and reduces cases of systemic racism, which changed police organizations and indigenous communities. Such policies champion fair and impartial policing strategies that make individuals and groups feel respected and treated fairly by law enforcement.
When individuals feel respected and recognized, high compliance and satisfaction with policing are witnessed, reducing racial profiling, bias, and discrimination. This creates a positive relationship between law enforcement and the communities, enhancing a peaceful, collaborative, and cohesive society. Gender equality in law enforcement has helped reduce sex discrimination, sexual harassment, and other predatory behaviors, which helps reduce racial bias and focuses on organizational fairness and justice (Keddie, 2022). Better responses to the disparities in needs and experiences of youths, women, men, and people of diverse backgrounds help ensure fairness in policing strategies, which then reduce cases of racial bias.
Diversity also helps speed up decision-making. This is achieved through preparedness and appreciation of cultural differences that make law enforcement agencies open to reforms, responsive to cultural and systemic changes, and including the public in their policing. Through collaboration and cooperation between the public and police officers, it is easier to generate feedback from the public on what reforms to implement and how to ensure just and fair policing strategies. According to (Taylor et al., 2022), a leveraged police force leads to a more reflective and open-minded policing strategy that helps ensure civilian oversight, better policing strategies, and handling racial bias. Moreover, with increased communication and communication exchange, stereotypes are broken, biases are addressed, and better ways to cope with new strategies are implemented. Such strategies help smoothen coordination, communication, and collaboration, which helps develop policing reforms that champion reducing racial profiling cases. Reduction in racial profiling cases creates a positive environment for the public and police to live peacefully and work together to reduce any biases and assumptions related to policing strategies implemented by law enforcement officers in their policing duties.
Diverse and open-minded strategies also level up policing and create a flexible and adaptable environment that might provide decisions and solutions for unforeseen challenges and problems. Fair and impartial decision-making also helps in problem-solving. The “groupthink” mentality of homogenous and prevailing opinions is eradicated through diverse thoughts, creating a safe environment to air concerns, reduce suspicions, address stereotypes, encourage constructive and critical analysis, and reduce decisions prone to bias. Furthermore, when the public is involved in decision-making, they gain confidence and trust, which helps develop ways to address underlying concerns and reduce racial stereotypes by connecting and understanding different backgrounds. The variety of ideas and perspectives presented by diverse, open-minded individuals enhances faster problem-solving, which, in turn, identifies creative and alternative solutions to racial bias, profiling, and discrimination. Thus, diverse law enforcement mindsets and leadership affect decisions, policies, procedures, and practices, which lead to more inclusive and effective policing strategies that prioritize community wellbeing and champion stringent discriminatory regulations.
Last but not least, diversity in law enforcement reduces racial bias through improved community relations and cultural competency training because a diverse law enforcement force reflects the communities they serve. Diverse perspectives and experiences from diverse law enforcement officers build an understanding and relationship of the cultural nuances and challenges. A study conducted by (Miles-Johnson et al., 2021) showed that police misconduct is associated with quality of contact, poor communication, and mistrust in interaction between the public and the police. Thus, diverse law enforcements help reduce bias, create an understanding, and build trust between law enforcement officers and the public. Through diversity, the needs, interests, and preferences of minority and marginalized groups are addressed.
Furthermore, through community relations and engagement, diversified law enforcement strategies help in the allocation of police resources in rural areas to help policymakers and practitioners address challenges concerning racial bias and profiling (Peng Keke et al., 2023). Diverse law enforcement agencies can also engage communities through dialogue and consultation. Such dialogues involve the police and other policymakers and practitioners in seeking input from diverse perspectives that build trust, enhance collaboration, and address racial bias.
Law enforcement agencies also mirror the diversity of their communities, which helps build trust and rapport. Positive interactions between officers and community members can help break down stereotypes and reduce tensions, ultimately mitigating racial bias. Diversifying police forces goes a long way in addressing structural inequality, use of force, and systemic racism, which helps reduce racial bias (Winterhalter, 2020). Cultural competency training equips law enforcement officers with an understanding of diverse community interests, beliefs, and attitudes, which help implement fair and just policing strategies. Diversity enhances collaboration, cooperation, and accountability, which keeps the public updated and aware of how they need to be treated by law enforcement officers and suggests techniques on how to reform policing strategies to reduce cases of racial bias, profiling, and discrimination. Police officers and other law enforcement officers are also equipped with skills, knowledge, understanding, and strategies to navigate diverse cultures and how to reduce, prevent, and mitigate racial bias and profiling in law enforcement. This community engagement enhances a transparent, open, and accountable state that enhances efficiency, effectiveness, and responsiveness to sound policing strategies and practices between law enforcement officers and the public. In addition, community engagement and relations promote inclusive policies and practices that champion fairness and equity in policing that help reduce racial profiling and biases in Canadian law enforcement.
In summary, diverse law enforcement positively impacts policing and shapes racial bias and profiling in law enforcement. Diversity in law enforcement reduces racial bias through improved cultural relations and competency training, enhancing transparency, openness, and accountability, enhancing fairness and impartiality in policing, speeding up decision-making, enhancing understanding, and increasing trust, cooperation, and collaboration. By doing so, stereotypes are broken, tensions are reduced, better reforms are implemented, communities are involved and engaged, historical concerns are tackled, over-reliance on assumptions is reduced, and the formulation of non-discriminatory policing strategies.
Keddie, A. (2023). Gender equality reform and police organizations: A social justice approach. Gender, Work & Organization, 30(3), 810–825.
Keke, P., Mengxi, G., Huijun, C., Jinyao, T., Yuqiu, X., & Feng, J. (2023). Rural policing in China: Criminal investigation and policing resources for police officers. Heliyon, 9(8).
Mehmi, S., Blauer, R., & De Gannes, K. (2021). Building trust in modern day policing: A neighborhood community officer evaluation. Journal of Community Safety and WellbeingWellbeing, 6(1), 6-10.
Miles-Johnson, T., Fay, S., & Wiedlitzka, S. (2021). Policing minority communities: How perception of engagement and “awareness” influence officer attitudes toward practice. Social Sciences, 10(2), 70.
Modise, J. M. Police Accountability, Oversight, and Integrity to Enhance Professionalism in the Police Service.
Nanes, M. J. (2020). Policing in divided societies: Officer inclusion, citizen cooperation, and crime prevention. Conflict Management and Peace Science, 37(5), 580–604.
Prengler, M. K., Chawla, N., Leigh, A., & Rogers, K. M. (2023). Challenging racism as a Black police officer: An emergent theory of employee anti-racism—Journal of Applied Psychology, 108(2), 249.
Taylor, N., Corley, C., McFee, D., & Torigian, M. (2022). Improving community outcomes and social equity through leveraged police leadership. In Law Enforcement and Public Health: Partners for Community Safety and WellbeingWellbeing (pp. 85–109). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
Winterhalter, E. (2020, June 6). Is Hiring More Black Officers the Key to Reducing Police Violence? – JSTOR Daily. JSTOR Daily. https://daily.jstor.org/hiring-more-black-officers-key-reducing-police-violence/