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.
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IMAGE: Black and Hispanic officers make far fewer stops and arrests and use less force than white officers, especially against Black civilians, when facing otherwise common circumstances. Hispanic officers also engage. view more
Credit: Egan Jimenez, Princeton University
PRINCETON, N.J. The recent killings of Black Americans have reignited calls for policing reform, including proposals to diversify police departments, which have historically been made up of white, male officers. Yet, few studies have examined whether deploying minority and female officers actually changes police-civilian interactions or reduces instances of shootings and reported misconduct.
A study first debuted Feb. 7 at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 2021 Annual Meeting harnesses newly collected data from the Chicago Police Department to show that deploying officers of different backgrounds does, in fact, produce large differences in how police treat civili
B. Rose Huber, Princeton School of Public and International Affairs
Feb. 11, 2021 2:08 p.m.
Illustration by
Egan Jimenez, Princeton School of Public and International Affairs
The recent killings of Black Americans have reignited calls for policing reform, including proposals to diversify police departments, which have historically been made up of primarily white, male officers. Yet, few studies have examined whether deploying minority and female officers actually changes police-civilian interactions or reduces instances of shootings and reported misconduct.
Jonathan Mummolo
Egan Jimenez, Princeton School of Public and International Affairs
A study first debuted Feb. 7 at the American Association for the Advancement of Science 2021 Annual Meeting harnesses newly collected data from the Chicago Police Department to show that deploying officers of different backgrounds does, in fact, produce large differences in how police treat civilians.