Ethnicity and crime
Official crime statistics show higher crime rates for some ethnic minorities, but these statistics reflect policing practices and institutional racism rather than actual behaviour differences.
Real World
UK Home Office data consistently shows Black people are stopped and searched at seven times the rate of white people; critics argue this disparity inflates Black crime statistics, making it appear that ethnicity causes crime when policing patterns are the real explanation.
Exam Focus
Distinguish between statistics reflecting real offending versus policing bias — examiners penalise answers that treat official statistics as straightforwardly accurate.
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