Social segregation and lethal police violence in the city of São Paulo, Brazil (2014-2015)

Abstract

We aimed to investigate how lethal police violence (LPV) in the City of São Paulo (CSP), Brazil, is associated with socioeconomic development when we consider the victims’ place of residence and the locations of the fatal injuries. The spatial distribution of lethal police violence rate (LPVR) and its association with the human development index (HDI) was investigated using the Moran’s I (Global and Bivariate Local). Between 2014 and 2015 we found 403 police victims in the Health database and 794 victims in the Security Department. We found a non-random spatial distribution of the LPV considering the victim’s place of residence (I=+0.12; p<0.001) and the locations where the fatal injuries were inflicted (I=+0.07; p<0.001). We found a negative association between LPVR and the HDI of the place of residence (I=-0.10; p<0.001) and a positive association between LPVR and the HDI of the locations of the fatal injuries (I=+0.02; p<0.001). The results point to different dynamics of LPV in CSP. High mortality clusters are found in areas with lower HDI, when considering the victim’s address, and in areas with higher HDI, when considering the address of the violent events. LPV impacts young blacks, poorly educated residents of outskirts informing us about patterns of social segregation.

Association between racial residential segregation and homicide mortality in municipalities in Minas Gerais, Brazil

“…A study that explored the relationship between lethal police violence and socioeconomic development in São Paulo reported the existence of racial and social biases in this association. The findings demonstrate the existence of spatial clusters with high levels of mortality and different characteristics: the victims' place of residence tended to be located in areas with lower HDI, while the place of occurrence of violent events tended to be in areas with higher HDI 33 . Some studies have assessed the effect of public policies on residential segregation and its social and health consequences.…”

Associação entre segregação residencial racial e mortalidade por homicídio nos municípios de Minas Gerais, Brasil

“…Um estudo que analisou a relação entre a violência policial letal e o desenvolvimento socioeconômico na cidade de São Paulo evidenciou a existência de vieses, tanto raciais quanto sociais, nessa associação. Demonstrou-se a existência de clusters espaciais com alta mortalidade e com dinâmicas distintas: quando se considerava o domicílio das vítimas, observou-se áreas com menor IDH; em contrapartida, ao se considerar o endereço de ocorrência dos eventos violentos, tinha-se áreas com maior IDH 33 .…”