Our criminal legal system is entrenched in institutional racism but ‘led-by and for’ organisations provide communities with resilience against the discrimination they face. Rooted in shared lived experience, these organisations understand the unique challenges of Black, Asian, and Mixed Heritage people. They defend disenfranchised young people and create opportunities in their lives. These organisations are best placed to end racial disparities, but they deserve recognition and sustainable, ring-fenced funding to do so.
Racial disparities in UK policing and the impact on young people
The state of British policing is bleak. It has repeatedly been found guilty of institutional racism, lack of accountability and failure to reform practices that disproportionately impact Black, Asian and Mixed Heritage young people.
These experiences in the criminal legal system are antithetical to the idea of common citizenship which advocates for uniting people from different backgrounds. Statistics on joint enterprise and that Black children are 6.5x times more likely to be strip searched, reveal how young people are systematically traumatised by an institutionally racist system.
Against this backdrop, Black, Asian and Mixed Heritage young people are often excluded from the rule of law, dehumanised and adultified. Led-by and for organisations work against discriminatory policing and criminal legal system practices by providing culturally competent services in which children and young people are treated with respect and dignity.
The truth about two-tier policing
Following the racist riots in the summer, there were claims of a two-tier policing system that favoured ethnic minorities. These claims are insulting and unfounded. Black, Asian and Mixed Heritage people have never been respected or treated fairly by UK policing. On the contrary, interactions with the police have been historically contentious.
Did you know?
- Black people are 2.2x times more likely to be arrested than White people
- the rate of stop and search of people from the Black community is four times higher than for White people
- Black people are three times more likely to have forced used against them than White people.
As a result, the relationship between the police and Black people is marred by continuous low levels of trust.
Moreover, Black, Asian and Mixed Heritage young people are also criminalised in and by non-police institutions. In 2022, Black and Mixed Heritage pupils had the highest suspensions rates, with Mixed Heritage pupils having the highest suspension rates and the second highest permanent exclusion rates. This over-policing of young people feeds into the vicious cycle of criminal behaviour, otherwise known as the PRU to prison pipeline.
The need for Led-by and for organisations
Led-by and for organisations focus on the root causes of offending —systemic racism, socio-economic and educational exclusion. They do so through culturally sensitive programmes and support, such as mentoring programmes with empathetic role models, as well as diversionary initiatives designed to keep young people out of the system.
For instance, diversion programmes offer young people the chance, after arrest, to address their behaviour in alternative ways that prevents further escalation into the criminal legal system. Despite the success of these interventions, many led-by and for organisations are facing funding challenges. This funding crisis jeopardizes their sustainability and ability to deliver long term positive outcomes for young people.
By recognising triggers of criminal behaviour, these organisations also effectively advocate for people’s intersectional lives. Action for Race Equality has long championed the involvement of people with lived experience in the planning and delivery of programmes and interventions. Given the disproportionate criminalisation of Black, Asian, and Mixed Heritage young people, these organisations are vital for creating positive social identities.
A path forward: community-led justice
The current model of policing is failing. Empowering led-by and for organisations to have a stronger voice, shifting power dynamics and making policing less punitive and more collaborative is required to end the deeply embedded institutional racism in policing.”
It is unrealistic and dangerous for the police to continue undermining the effect they have on marginalised communities. By seeking the advice and knowledge from experts through their lived experience, policing can evolve to become an institution that equitably serves and protects all communities.
Bowale Fadare
Author
