Stereotype: Race
One of the widespread racial stereotypes is an acknowledgment of many African-American males as violent criminals. Juries find defendants representing minority groups guilty more frequently than non-minority defendants. The reason lies in human’s inclination towards assessment of everything they interact with. It is critical because it may shape prejudice among authorities against African-American males making them more likely to employ violence. This stereotype may contribute to longer court proceedings and fewer parole alternatives in the prison system.
The stereotype may evolve into a dangerous social reality that will persist in the form of institutionalized racism. Many legal systems operate on the idea that everyone is treated equally in the sight of the law. In such systems, decisions about guilt and innocence should be made based on cold facts rather than belonging to a certain social category. People strive to acquire insight and direction from the assessment of other individuals. This results in the manifestation of a certain prejudice or a stereotype — a generalized belief about a particular category of people, which may be based on ethnic or racial traits.
Stereotype: Religion
A widespread misconception or a stereotype that is harmful to society is the perception of all Muslims (especially representatives of Middle Eastern countries) as terrorists. The extension of such stereotypical views may lead to law enforcement adopting an implicit and biased judgment about mass crimes. It might lead to innocent people’s wrongful convictions for crimes based on their faith. The study of Frings et al. identified that Muslims were thought to be colder and more capable of committing a crime.
Muslim terrorist suspects are subjected to systematic prejudice in trials. These notions of coldness and competence affected the probability of being found guilty and receiving a harsh sentence. Religion represented a factor that determined the cold or warmth perception of an individual.
Stereotype: Ethnicity
Ethnicity stereotypes are diverse and include various factors of social standing. One such stereotype is the portrayal of Latinxs as “illegal aliens,” “foreigners,” or “illegal immigrants” who pose a threat to American domestic populations and cultural norms. During his tenure as a presidential candidate, Donald Trump exacerbated prejudice toward Latin Americans. He described Mexican immigrants as a nuisance and drug traffickers. Following his election, individuals were more willing to voice their prejudice and hatred.
This stereotype creates a division of citizens within the same country despite sharing an American identity. It contributes to the national degradation of the perception of minority groups and increases the chances of conviction for crimes on the basis of ethnicity. Even the number of hate crimes against this minority group may have grown. Notably, only one-third of the Latin American population in the US were born outside of its borders.