David Lammy exposes ‘racial bias’ in the criminal justice system

David Lammy has written a report which addresses the ‘racial bias’ within the criminal justice system. Written at the request of the British prime minister, Lammy’s report highlights the disproportionate number of black and ethnic minority males involved in the justice council.

Lammy’s report highlights the disparity between the black population in England and Wales - 3% - and the black population within the prison system, which makes up 12%. In youth prisons, 41% of the prison population are from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds.

The report acknowledges that overt racial discrimination in wider society is declining. However, certain language choices in the discourse surrounding crime remain prejudiced towards ethnic minorities - Lammy cites “gang” as an example, which is often used in relation to ethnicity, rather than to refer to a group, in discussions of crime.

Lammy, who is the MP for Tottenham, calls for a number of changes to be made. These include taking into account immaturity of young defendants, introducing rehabilitation schemes that allow participants to avoid ‘guilty’ status, and allowing convicted people to keep their criminal records private when seeking jobs.

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