Scientific American
A new study of the city’s policing also shows differences between male and female cops
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Demonstrators confront police during a protest over the death of Laquan McDonald on November 25, 2015, in Chicago. Credit: Scott Olson
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White police officers in Chicago are far more likely than their Black counterparts to stop, arrest or use force against Black civilians, and the disparity is more pronounced in the city’s highly segregated majority-Black neighborhoods, according to a study published Thursday in
Science. The study’s authors say the findings suggest more diversification in hiring could present an avenue for reform, but some social scientists and activists disagree. The city has had diversity programs in place since the 1960s.
Christine Fernando And Marion Renault February 11, 2021 - 1:43 PM
CHICAGO - In the last decade, high-profile police killings â including George Floyd in 2020 â have shaken the nation and led to widespread protests and calls for reform, including hiring more nonwhite and female officers.
But there was little research to back that up. Now, a new study published Thursday in the journal Science, suggests that diversity in law enforcement can indeed lead to improvements in how police treat people of colour.
âItâs a system that very clearly needs reforming,â said study co-author Dean Knox, an assistant professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. âWe just havenât had good data on what reforms work.â