12 Summary of Week 3

During this week you first looked at contemporary data related to the policing of Black, Asian and minority ethnic people. Statistics, official reports and press coverage all combine to make this a point of particular contention within policing today. After an introduction to the history of immigration and diversity within Britain, you then considered the history of policing and race/ethnicity in more detail during the second half of the twentieth century. At the end of the week, you reflected on some of the ways this history is relevant to the choices and actions which police forces (and individual police officers) are making today.

You should now be able to:

• appreciate why the policing of Black and Asian citizens is emotive and contested
• discuss the historic policing of Black and minority ethnic communities in the twentieth century
• form a view as to how the past is still relevant to day-to-day policing and public debate.

Police forces across Britain are working on a range of race action plans intended to tackle the issues outlined here. Their success or failure in this endeavour remains to be seen. But there is other sections of the population who the police have been accused of failing – women. Next week will focus on the history of the treatment of female citizens by, and within, police forces.

You can now go to Week 4.