rcer, or the department itself. Many policies have been suggested to either report these discriminatory acts, or to record the ethnicity, race, or gender of the person being stopped. However, without the correct supervision of these officers, we can not truthfully tell whether these policies will be followed. There have been bills proposed to even make the slightest positive effect on racial profiling, yet many have been overlooked. Former California Governor Pete Wilson served as best he could to fight key civil rights issues such as affirmative action and immigrant rights, however Governor Gray Davis has had a disappointing civil rights record. Although he has helped establish new civil rights gains for the lesbian and gay communities, he has also vetoed a number of bills aimed at reducing discrimination against communities of color and immigrants. SB 44, a bill sponsored by Senator Richard Polanco, encourages state and local governments to conduct outreach programs. SB 44 had bipartisan support and was previously endorsed by former Attorney General Dan Lungren. Governor Davis vetoed the bill claiming that outreach toward minorities and women would violate Proposition 209, a position contrary to recent court decisions. Davis also vetoes what has been colloquially referred to as the “Driving While Black or Brown” bill (SB 78.) The bill was proposed to combat racial profiling – law enforcement actions taken simply because of the race of the driver – by requiring police officers to file reports on all motorists they stop. Although President Clinton has recently ordered federal law enforcement agencies to begin collecting this data, and a number of Bay Area police departments have similar plans, Davis saw little need to collect this information. However, the “Driving While Black or Brown” bill makes much sense to part of the solution I will propose to help decrease or even end the crime of r...
