Jon Holden | Lindenlink Reporter

I had read on twitter a couple weeks ago about a judge ruling New York City’s “Stop and Frisk” practice unconstitutional.  As unfathomable and ridiculous as that sounds; yes it was actually happening.

It first caught my attention when The Wall Street Journal published it on twitter. I had assumed it was a relatively new idea given a federal judge in The Bronx ruled it as unconstitutional. The fact that an idea like this was even allowed in the first place is beyond me.

Now the “stop and frisk” practice has started and mainly stays in some of New York’s poorest neighborhoods. If someone is under “reasonable suspicion” of having broken the law, or looks like they are attempting to break the law. The New York City Police have the right stop and frisk that person and even hold them for an extended period of time. Excluding the fact that this is outlandishly illegal, Civil Rights groups alike have been persecuting the Police Department for discriminating against minorities.

At first I thought that seemed a little farfetched, low income neighborhoods tend to be minorities.  I will say that’s a non- bias thing to say and that there is a correlation.  But when 700,000 people get stopped and frisked in 2011 and the number rises in 2012, I feel like you have to draw the line. Eighty-five percent of the people stopped and frisked were minorities. It is simply unacceptable. Police Officers are public workers, which mean minorities are essentially paying taxes to be unjustly harassed, bothered and intimidated by the same people who swear to protect and serve.

Now before you applaud government officials for doing their job, it is important to know that the same judge who banned “stop and frisk,” has actually lifted the ban. So instead of frisking people whenever they want; they can only do it whenever they want, as long as they’re really sure.

I will have to take the cop’s word for it, which is about as useful as a dirty jock-strap. But let’s take a step back, the people of New York shouldn’t have anything to fear, this isn’t a new idea. The same idea was practiced under the regime of Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, and still practiced in Cuba.

If that doesn’t worry you, then we might as well just give up our human rights.