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Police and discrimination

Discrimination within the police force is a complex phenomenon requiring continuous and critical analysis. Discrimination can occur in almost all areas of police action. At the same time, it is remarkable that the risks for people with (attributed) discrimination characteristics as well as the extent of the experienced discrimination may vary depending on the specific field of action. In most cases, discrimination is not aimed at one individual (attributed) characteristic but often at several discrimination characteristics that are considered to be specifically connected, for instance if random checks are based on age, gender and racist attribution.

People discriminated against by the police are affected by both overpolicing, where people or groups of people are disproportionately often affected by police action compared to others, or by a lack of protection by the police (underprotection). As a consequence, discrimination by the police can lead to lasting loss of trust in government institutions.