Nationwide protests over the killing of black men by police officers rightly focus on racial disparities in all phases of criminal justice. But the role of race in noncriminal contexts as shaped by the U.S. Supreme Court is just as important.
The racial disparity that has widened between those serving on police forces compared with the communities they police can be traced to decisions of the court. In 1976 the Supreme Court rejected a challenge to the racial segregation of the District of Columbia police force in Washington v. Davis. Unsuccessful black applicants for police officer positions sued, contending the required test was racially discriminatory and irrelevant.
