I. STEREOTYPICAL BIASES AGAINST AFRICAN-AMERICAN MALES

Generally, stereotypical attitudes and feelings from white Americans and foreigners are that black males are overly aggressive, violent, involved in drugs, dishonest, shiftless and lazy, desirous of white women, lacking in work ethics, and are often rapists and criminals. Many of these stereotypical biases are characterized on prime time television and dramatized on the evening news and press. Black males are projected by the media as being violent, shiftless, or robbers. Unfortunately these stereotypes are hardly recent in origin.

More recently, other stereotypical attitudes about black males have revealed that white Americans believe that black males are less intelligent than other groups, including black females, and that black males are only preoccupied with sex and sports. The bottom line is that white Americans are generally intimidated, fearful, and uncomfortable with black males, but still feel superior to black males. The Supreme Court condoned and perpetuated many of the present day stereotypical biases concerning African-American males in the landmark decision Dred Scott v. Sanford. In Dred Scott, the Court described Scott, a black male slave, and freed slaves as “beings of an inferior order” who were not intended to be protected by the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Today, the justice system regrettably reflects these same sentiments.