Race and Reaction: Divergent Views of Police Violence and Protest against

While scholars have documented the contentious relationship between law enforcement and communities of color, most studies tend to compare perspectives of specific communities of color (e.g., Black Americans, Latina/os, Asian Americans) to White Americans-without examining between-group differences of the historically marginalized racial groups. In Study 1, 543 participants of diverse racial/ethnic groups (e.g., Black, Latina/o, Asian, White) completed the Perceptions of Police Scale (POPS)-a measure of general attitudes toward law enforcement and beliefs about police bias. Findings demonstrate that Black participants were more likely than Whites and Latina/os to view police negatively. While there were no significant gender differences in participants' perceptions of police, Black men were more likely to have negative perceptions of police than White and Asian men. In Study 2, we extracted 222 participants from the larger sample who were asked about the number of times police had unlawfully stopped them, while providing a guided narrative to explore their reactions to these experiences. A total of 61 participants (or 27.8% of the total sample) reported being unfairly stopped by police officers.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions of Police, Racial Profiling, and Psychological Outcomes: A Mixed Methodological Study

Nadal

Davidoff

Allicock

et al. 2017

“…But these types of descriptions are not an anomaly (see Reinka & Leach, ; Scott, Ma, Sadler, & Correll, for other perceptions of police violence). Take, for instance, posthumous characterizations of Eric Garner, a 43‐year‐old unarmed Black man killed in 2014 by New York City Police officer Daniel Pantaleo.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Black Racial Stereotypes and Victim Blaming: Implications for Media Coverage and Criminal Proceedings in Cases of Police Violence against Racial and Ethnic Minorities

Dukes

Gaither

2017

Posthumous stereotypical media portrayals of Michael Brown and other racial and ethnic minority victims of police violence have sparked questions about the influence of racial stereotypes on public opinions about their deaths and criminal proceedings for their killers. However, few studies have empirically investigated how the specific type of information released about a victim impacts opinions surrounding such incidents. Participants (N = 453) read about an altercation that resulted in a shooting death where the race of the victim and shooter (Black vs. White) was randomly assigned. Participants learned either negative, Black male stereotypic or positive, Black male counterstereotypic information about the victim. Next, participants appraised levels of fault and blame, sympathy and empathy for the victim and shooter, and indictment recommendations for the shooter. Findings suggest that the type of information released about a victim can significantly sway attitudes toward the victim and the shooter. Implications for media portrayals of racial/ethnic minority victims of police violence and its impact on criminal sentencing are discussed.

“…Reinka and Leach (), similarly, found that Blacks and Whites had different degrees of knowledge about police brutality and Black protest. Using open‐ended responses to visual images of police violence and largely Black protests, they found that Whites judged images of Black protest more novel, but that these images mattered more to Blacks.…”

Section: How? the Role Of Attitudes Perceptions And Beliefsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…What are available response options for an individual who experiences or witnesses violence, whether lethal, merely harassing, or intimidating? Four possibilities are offered: (1) trauma, depression (Bryant‐Davis et al., ); (2) normalization—psychic defense (Nadal et al., ); (3) activism—protest and resistance (Reinka & Leach, ); and (4) learned helplessness—diminished coping and lack of control (Kauff, Wölfer, & Hewstone, ). These analyses provide a broad picture of an expanded set of consequences of police brutality that goes beyond the specifics of a given incident.…”

Section: What? Effects Of Violence On Psyche Body Community and Gementioning

confidence: 99%

Killing Fields: Explaining Police Violence against Persons of Color

Jones

2017

This concluding article situates the police violence against persons of color in an historical context, suggesting that the current wave of killings replicates historical trends. A social science explanation is proposed to better understand the antecedents and consequences of police violence. A major strength of the articles in this volume is their delineation of causes of police violence and their consequences. The underlying and recurring explanation for police violence is stereotypical racial attitudes and their behavioral consequences. Effects of police violence extend beyond immediate victims to include communities of color. Comparisons with European police suggest that while lethal actions by police in Europe are far fewer, patterns of brutality and its justification mirror the U.S. context. The problem of police violence against persons of color is multidimensional and complex. This article concludes that there is no easy overarching solution or "fix" to this violence. Rather, each facet must be carefully examined-as this volume has done-and approaches focused on causes and consequences of specific problems should be developed and pursued.In the United States, violence directed at people of color is as old as the country itself. Whether it is precipitated by a desire and need for control of colored bodies and minds, sustaining an illegitimate system of oppression, or maintaining a cultural self-image of superiority, it has been woven into the fabric of this society. The patterns of, the rationales for, and resistance to this violence have changed over the years, and we are now confronted with understanding why race matters in ways it always has, with outcomes that continue to challenge our fundamental principles of freedom, equality, and democracy.Recent events have, as in other eras such as lynching in the early 20th century, demanded that attention be paid to the violence that is harder to explain when