13 September 2021
A report by the Institute of Race Relations and Centre on Dynamics of Ethnicity argues that the police powers introduced and utilised to try to control the spread of the pandemic have disproportionately impacted upon racially minoritised individuals, who have been "more likely to be stopped by the police, threatened or subject to police violence and falsely accused of rule-breaking and wrong-doing."
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"A threat to public safety: policing, racism and the Covid-19 pandemic raises concerns about the policing of the pandemic and shows that racially minoritised communities have been most harshly affected – being more likely to be stopped by the police, threatened or subject to police violence and falsely accused of rule-breaking and wrong-doing.
The report argues that lockdown conditions, new police powers, and histories of institutionally racist policing have combined to pose a threat to already over-policed communities, and the most marginalised and vulnerable sections of society.
The research is published in the context of increased scrutiny around policing, particularly following significant mobilisations under the banner of Black Lives Matter and ‘Kill the Bill’ demonstrations against the government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts bill."
Full report: A threat to public safety: policing, racism and the Covid-19 pandemic (IRR)
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