LETTER: Logical Decision

I was very pleased to read that University Police has decided to begin providing the race of suspects (DP 2/21/92). Not only is the decision logical in helping to apprehend suspects, but it was about time the University Police matured enough to deal with the issue of race instead of just ignoring it. I assume the University did not report race previously because it assumed it would be seen as fostering prejudice by reporting that most of the criminals were black. Yet, this theory was greatly flawed because by not reporting race, the University Police enhanced racism. People simply assumed that the criminals were black, not because of prejudices, but simply because of the demographics of West Philadelphia. Outside of the University, most of the residents are black, thus most of the victims and criminals are black. ADAM COHEN College '95