Guilty by Association, 9/10 of the Law and All that Jazz

              Proceeding with the theme of biases in the criminal justice system, it is extremely troubling to discuss the issues without wondering about why the system has transformed (or possibly always been the same) into a prejudiced mess.  As previously mentioned, as well as utilizing common sense, not all of the practitioners who work within the criminal justice have some racist or other biased agenda. However, this is where the guilty by association cliché can be interjected.  In most cases, this phrase (“guilty by association”) is directed towards people who have committed criminal acts, but this blog addresses the upholding of the state and federal Constitutions by the so-called professionals and how even the ones who are not engaging in this favoritism are equally guilty of the terrible practices that are abundant in the criminal justice system.

               As the instances of abuse of power and corruption consistently reoccur , the integrity of the criminal justice falls to its knees and becomes closer to death, or becomes closer to being overrun by tyrannical bastards who are not constitutionally motivated.  This unfairness is the exact opposite of the foundational documents that the United States operates on.  Yes, we all still have our rights to vote, buy things, and speak freely (to some extent), but when a person goes against the grain of the criminal laws in this society there is a tendency to look at their race, gender, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and sexual orientation.  Which in turn is an example of providing justice without a blindfold.  As aforementioned, this is where the guilty by association factor becomes relevant, when there is a system that revolves around the prosecuting of minorities (the entire gamut of minorities, not only racial) it makes the system not just, not equal, and certainly not fair (this does not suggest that the minorities who are involved with the criminal justice system are always innocent).  This behavior by the system is similar to past fascist regimes throughout history; even with the professionals who are providing fair justice the prejudicial tendencies of others become a reflection of their character as well.  Again, because of the disgrace of the system by some the many others who are authentic take the heat as well.  This troubling paradox gives a bad reputation to every practitioner within the system, which in turn can be a reason for the distrusting attitude toward the criminal justice system by many Americans, as well as why some people are questioning the integrity of the Constitution.  Any claims about conjecture can be destroyed by observing any of the components of the criminal justice system, or by simply looking for cases of prejudices in the massive amount of media that is prevalent in this era.  By all means please do look, and be fair when looking, hasty decisions are hasty decisions. 

               Strikingly, this is another concept that many criminal justice professionals will not engage in, it is too sensitive and obviously would make them look bad.  Regardless, the fact remains that when there is a system that is based on the prosecuting of minorities it gives every person who is involved within the system a terrible stereotype, a stereotype that is not positive or professional.  All in all, those who are not working on some prejudicial agenda need to step up and do something.  As Mr. Marley says, “you're running away, throw away the false pride, you can run but you can’t hide, face reality now, you can’t run away from yourself!”