Studies

Research on racial bias in policing

“The over-policing that criminality (real and perceived) is used to justify… supports the notion that [Black people] are inherently crime-prone, and saddles many with the markers of a criminal record, thus … hampering future economic prospects."

“Media outlets tend to focus on the victimization of White women.” & “There were fewer stories about Latina/Black female victims… and the narrative content tended to be unsympathetic (e.g., bad person, risk-taker/complicit, bad environment)."

“A female offender’s race/ethnicity was the strongest predictor of a [news] story’s overall tone… Stories about white female offenders were more likely to have neutral or favorable tones than stories about minority female offenders."

“Among Black victims, the probability of reporting crime declines as their perceptions that the police are ineffective increases. Additionally, … perceived police ineffectiveness is more pronounced among Blacks, resulting in a reluctance to seek police intervention."

“Though body-worn cameras may go some way to curbing racial bias in policing, they are almost certainly not the panacea that some people initially hoped they would be… What is needed is change in recruiting, organizational culture, training, and accountability mechanisms."

“If [policing] data … was collected and produced in a racially biased fashion, then the predictions that are generated by the algorithm will reflect these biases.” & “Predictive policing depends on a closed, racialized past and produces a closed, racialized future."

“I find that low-level policing in suburbs diminished between 1990 and 2014, but such policing was more common and more racially disproportionate there than in cities by the end of the study period."

“60 percent [of black adults] reported that they or a family member have been unfairly stopped or treated by the police because they are black… 31 percent reported that they have avoided calling the police because of concerns of discrimination."

“Black middle and high school students are over three times more likely [than white students] to attend a school with more security staff than mental health personnel."