Highlights
Per Gallup, 81 percent of African Americans want the police presence in their communities to stay the same or increased.
Out of 40-60 million yearly encounters with citizens, mistakes are inevitable. Out of these immense numbers, 2-3 percent involve force “or” the threat of force (based on citizen surveys). Per critics, the figure is much higher.
Are we ignoring Black victims of violence? The problem with growing violence is that minority communities will suffer the most. More than 85% of the homicide increase was in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods,
Critics of law enforcement need to pay attention to the data and temper their opinions before we lose more cops and violence in cities gets worse.
Author
Leonard Adam Sipes, Jr.
Retired federal senior spokesperson. Thirty-five years of directing award-winning public relations for national and state criminal justice agencies. Interviewed multiple times by every national news outlet. Former Senior Specialist for Crime Prevention for the Department of Justice’s clearinghouse. Former Director of Information Services, National Crime Prevention Council. Former Adjunct Associate Professor of criminology and public affairs-University of Maryland, University College. Former advisor to presidential and gubernatorial campaigns. Former advisor to the “McGruff-Take a Bite Out of Crime” national media campaign. Certificate of Advanced Study-Johns Hopkins University. Former police officer. Aspiring drummer.
Article
Per Gallup, 81 percent of African Americans want the police presence in their communities to stay the same or increased.
Many police officers regardless of race are leaving because they believe that the public no longer supports or wants them, but that simply isn’t true.
The History
We within the justice system understand the animosity between law enforcement and African Americans. We know the history of cops and past repressions. We’ve all seen officers with dogs brutally confront civil rights demonstrations in the 1960s. Police enforced Jim Crow laws in the south.
We’ve also heard the statements of current civil rights leaders and the charge that cops are unjustifiably killing and otherwise harming African Americans in alarming numbers.
The Data
Per the National Academy of Sciences, over the life course, about 1 in every 1,000 black men can expect to be killed by police, National Academy of Sciences.
There were 7,484 Black homicide victims in the US in 2019, Statista. 88.5 percent of Black victims are killed by non-police Black perpetrators, Reuters. 241 Blacks were killed by law enforcement in 2020 compared to 457 whites and 169 Hispanics, Statista.
Violent crime and fear of crime are skyrocketing. Gun sales are going through the roof. People are leaving cities, US Crime Rates.
News reports suggest that the cities where protests and or riots have occurred are being hit the hardest, Governing.Com.
It’s African American communities that are bearing the brunt of the violence, NBC News.
There are articles linking police defunding and lack of proactive policing to increased homicides and violence, Washington Times.
There were 722 more homicides in nine U.S. cities last year, according to police data. More than 85% of the increase was in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods, The Marshall Project.
Black men are about 2.5 times more likely to be killed by police over the life course than are white men, National Academy of Sciences.
Arrests
Some civil rights leaders insist that Blacks are overrepresented as to arrests. As to overall arrests, per the US Department of Justice, “White and black people were arrested proportionate to their involvement in serious nonfatal violent crime overall and proportionate to their involvement in serious nonfatal violent crime reported to police,” USDOJ Data On Race And Crime.
Estimates As To Police Killings Of Unarmed Black Men By Law Enforcement-The Skeptic
In a chart offered by The Skeptic, people (based on political affiliation) estimated the number of unarmed Black men killed by law enforcement in 2019. Estimates ranged from 100 to 1,000 to 10,000 to more than 10,000 with those claiming a liberal affiliation leading the way as to higher estimates. However, all groups including moderates to conservatives grossly exaggerated the numbers.
According to the Washington Post database, regarded by Nature magazine as the “most complete database,” 13 unarmed black men were fatally shot by police in 2019. According to a second database called “Mapping Police Violence”, compiled by data scientists and activists, 27 unarmed black men were killed by police (by any means) in 2019.
Are We Ignoring Black Victims of Violence?
Tens of thousands of African Americans have been murdered since the increase in violence in 2015 (after the Ferguson and Baltimore incidents). The overwhelming number of perpetrators are Black. It’s the same for aggravated assaults (attacks with a weapon). This is compared to approximately 200-250 police deadly shootings involving African Americans a year, Statista.
For the last five years, police have fatally shot about 1,000 civilians annually, the vast majority of whom were armed or otherwise dangerous. Black people account for about 23% of those shot and killed by police; they are about 13% of the U.S. population, Manhattan Institute. Additional media outlets offer similar data.
My Experience
I was employed at the highest levels of a justice system lead by Blacks and Black women for over twenty-five years. In one federal organization, over 80 percent of the employees were Black.
The problems and statistics were the same. The disparities were the same as any other justice organization.
When I attended community meetings, Black citizens didn’t ask for an increased police presence, they demanded it. The justice system was accused of ignoring crime in Black communities by not putting enough cops in neighborhoods. We were told that we had to get rid of the troublemakers, are they didn’t care how we did it.
The lesson is that interactions between groups and the justice system are immeasurably complex and are not nearly as straightforward as critics present them.
Race And Violence
I hosted a federal podcast where a civil rights leader stated that the majority of the nation’s prison population consisted of African Americans, which obviously isn’t correct. He isn’t the only one making that mistake. Blacks make up 12.5 percent of the population of the United States thus it’s impossible to state that African Americans make up the bulk of people in the justice system.
I was called a racist in a Reddit Crimology forum for quoting Department of Justice-Bureau Of Justice Statistics data stating that violent crime increased, Crime In The US. The same will happen here.
Writing about race and violence, however impartially, is filled with pitfalls. Objectivity and data often take a back seat to ideology and strong emotions.
But per endless media accounts, we are losing a lot of cops. Recruitment is down 63 percent. Officers are no longer willing to be proactive and violence in many cities is going through the roof. The lack of cops or the lack of proactivity is connected to rising violence.
And its minority communities are being hit the hardest.
Many police officers regardless of race are leaving because they believe that the public no longer supports or wants them, but that simply isn’t true.
I wrote numerous articles showing polling data indicating that law enforcement is one of the most respected professions in America with the widespread support of everyone. Yes, there are differences as to race but regardless of demographics, the majority of those polled want, respect and support cops, Public Opinion and Cops.
The article below supports my contention that Americans want more cops or maintenance of current numbers.
Gallup (quotes edited for brevity)
When asked whether they want the police to spend more time, the same amount of time or less time than they currently do in their area, most Black Americans — 61% — want the police presence to remain the same. This is similar to the 67% of all U.S. adults preferring the status quo, including 71% of White Americans.
Meanwhile, nearly equal proportions of Black Americans say they would like the police to spend more time in their area (20%) as say they’d like them to spend less time there (19%).
These findings are from a Gallup Panel survey conducted as part of the newly launched Gallup Center on Black Voices. The study includes large samples of Black, Hispanic and Asian Americans, weighted to their correct proportions of the population.
Of these four racial/ethnic groups, Asian Americans are the most likely to want less police presence where they live, with 28% saying this.
That contrasts with 12% of White Americans, 17% of Hispanic Americans and 19% of Black Americans.
Little Difference by Race in Local Exposure to Police
The survey also asked Americans to estimate how often they see police in their neighborhood. Black Americans’ reported exposure to local police is slightly above the national average, with 32% saying they see the police often or very often in their neighborhood. This compares with 22% of White Americans and 21% of Asian Americans. Hispanic Americans’ experience is similar to that of Black Americans, with 28% often seeing police where they live.
Most other Black Americans (41%) say they sometimes see police in their area, matching the national average, while another 27% say they rarely or never see them.
The slightly elevated frequency with which Black Americans see police in their neighborhood has limited impact on their preferences for changing the local police presence. About a third of Black Americans who say they often see the police in their neighborhood think the police should spend less time there (34%); however, the majority of adults in this group think they should spend the same amount of time (56%) or more time (10%).
Black Americans Lack Assurance Police Encounters Will Go Well
Although Black Americans seem about as comfortable as Americans overall with the amount of police presence where they live, they differ markedly in their perceptions of how their local police might treat them if they were to interact.
Fewer than one in five Black Americans feel very confident that the police in their area would treat them with courtesy and respect. While similar to the 24% of Asian Americans saying the same, it is markedly lower than the 40% of Hispanic Americans and the 56% of White Americans who feel this way. This could either stem from Black Americans’ own negative experiences with the police or from their familiarity with people who have had negative encounters with law enforcement.
Bottom Line
It’s not so much the volume of interactions Black Americans have with the police that troubles them or differentiates them from other racial groups, but rather the quality of those interactions.
Most Black Americans want the police to spend at least as much time in their area as they currently do, indicating that they value the need for the service that police provide. However, that exposure comes with more trepidation for Black than White or Hispanic Americans about what they might experience in a police encounter.
70 Percent of Black Americans Support Law Enforcement
A CBS News/YouGov poll released this week found that 70% of “Black Americans” said that local police are doing a “very good” or “somewhat good” job. The poll results also indicated that 82% of “Whites” and 77% of “Hispanics” said police were doing a “very or somewhat good job.”
Trust in Law Enforcement-New Data-USA Today (edited and rearranged quotes)
Trust in local police and law enforcement has risen to 69%.
Among Black respondents, trust in Black Lives Matter has fallen by 12 points and trust in local police has risen by 14 points. Among white respondents, trust in Black Lives Matter has fallen by 8 points and trust in local police has risen by 12 points.
In the wake of the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol by Trump supporters, the scales have tipped toward law enforcement. By double digits, 49%-31%, those surveyed say it is more important to ensure law and order.
Defunding The Police-New Data-USA Today (edited and rearranged quotes)
Support to redistribute police department funding has decreased among Americans since August after a summer of protests had erupted across the country against racial injustice and police brutality, a recent Ipsos/USA TODAY poll found.
Only 18% of respondents supported the movement known as “defund the police,” and 58% said they opposed it. Though white Americans (67%) and Republicans (84%) were much more likely to oppose the movement, only 28% of Black Americans and 34% of Democrats were in favor of it.
But respondents were less opposed to the idea of redirecting police funds to social services, though a 57% majority was still against the idea. Forty-three percent of Americans supported the idea. Those numbers represented a slight decline from August, after the peak of the protests, when 53% were opposed and 47% were in favor of redirecting police spending.
Previous Data-Public Perceptions Of law Enforcement
Fragile Communities
Even in fragile communities (i.e., high unemployment), a study finds that 74% of fragile-community residents vs. 87% of Americans overall think people like themselves are treated “very fairly” or “fairly” by their local police.
The results vary by racial group: Black (65%) and Hispanic (72%) residents of fragile communities are considerably less likely than white residents (87%) to say people like themselves are treated fairly by police, Gallup.
Fragile Communities Want More Cops
68% of Chicago’s “fragile community” (i.e., low income) residents want a greater police presence.
54 percent of low-income communities nationally want more police officers, (upcoming article based on A Gallup Poll).
Nine Out of 10 Residents Felt The Police Were Respectful
An estimated 40 million U.S. residents age 16 or older, or about 17 percent of the population, had a face-to-face contact with a police officer in one year. Among people who had face-to-face contacts, about nine out of 10 residents felt the police were respectful or acted properly, Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Having said this, it’s inevitable that out of 40 million yearly encounters, some will go bad. It’s a statistical reality.
Per the Bureau of Justice Statistics study, police used or threatened to use force in less than two percent of contacts.
Police Citizen Contacts
Some media commentators suggest that police use of force is growing/common/frequent during stops. Less than 3% of U.S. residents experienced a threat “or” use of force during their most recent police-initiated contact.
Contrary to media reports, the use of force decreased for police-initiated contacts from 3.3 to 2.8 percent.
Contrary to critics, police-initiated arrests decreased considerably, 815,000 in 2015-386,000 in 2018.
There are suggestions that public confidence and a willingness to interact with law enforcement declined. Contact with law enforcement increased, 53,496,000 in 2015-61,542,000 in 2018. Most of this was resident-initiated (27,060,000 in 2015-35,468,000 in 2018).
The lowest and highest income household incomes had the same amount of police-initiated contact (11.4-11.5 percent), thus contradicting those who argue that proactive police contact is directed solely towards low-income communities, Police Myths
Best in The World
Gallup’s 2018 Global Law and Order report state that US and Canadian police are the world’s most trusted law enforcement officers, Most Trusted.
Per Gallup, The Majority Of Americans Rate Police Encounters As Positive, Respectful and Fair
The data below was collected as nationwide protests took place after the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. They are based on a June 23-July 6 Gallup survey.
Seventy-five percent of respondents said that their police interaction was a positive experience including most Hispanic and Black individuals polled.
Eighty-six percent of respondents said that they were treated with respect including most Hispanic and Black individuals polled.
Eighty-nine percent of respondents said they were treated fairly including most Hispanic and Black individuals polled.
Conclusions
We all hate racist people. Cops are held to a high standard. We within the justice system are here to serve, nothing more, nothing less.
Yes, some officers have engaged in criminal activity. Some have made tragic mistakes. But after decades in the justice system, I have never encountered anyone expressing racist views. In my discussions with White and Black employees, we understand the animosity. The overwhelming majority seem dedicated to fair and equal treatment under the law.
But out of 40-60 million yearly encounters with citizens, mistakes are inevitable. Out of these immense numbers, 2-3 percent involve force “or” the threat of force (based on citizen surveys). If you listen to critics, the figure is much higher.
Despite immense negative media coverage, the vast majority of Americans, regardless of who they are, view law enforcement favorably. Cops may be taking a hit right now, but public opinion will bounce back. It always does.
Yes, cops are bewildered and angry, and we will probably lose a lot of police officers. Recruitment (down 63 percent) and retention will be problems and violence will probably increase. People will flee cities.
We live in tumultuous times and some people “currently” have a diminished view of law enforcement. But democracy is messy and times like this are inevitable. Cops with the best of intentions make mistakes. There are times where the media gives us the benefit of doubt and there are times when we get slammed.
But law enforcement will regain its esteem. It’s interesting that many of the protestors of the 1960s and 1970s (who are current friends) are aghast at the current level of violence at protests and in cities due to street crime.
I suggest that per data, the majority of Americans feel the same way. They are not excusing the stupid and sometimes criminal actions on the part of some police officers but everyone understands that we collectively stand or fall through through civil discourse and the rule of law. We can’t continue as a functioning country without compromise and respectful discussion.
But critics of law enforcement need to pay attention to the data and temper their opinions before we lose more cops and violence in cities gets worse.
The problem with intense violence is that minority communities suffer the most.
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