AFR 215 Police and Urban Communities

3 hours 

All members of the community should have an expectation that they will be safe and protected as they go about their daily lives. In this course students will examine the widespread assumption that in exchange for effective policing residents of low income communities should have to give up their rights such as freedom from unreasonable surveillance, search, privacy and racial/ethnic profiling. Also explored is the ideal role of the police in low income communities in comparison to the reality of how they are actually policed. We will discuss theories of policing, the constitutional constraints on police actions, and the history of policing in these communities. Using case studies and student input we will discuss the critique of current community policing and will also discuss best practices in this area.