Police Relations with Black and White Youths in Different Urban Neighborhoods
'Police Relations with Black and White Youths in Different Urban Neighborhoods,' Urban Affairs Review, 44, 6 (July 2009): 858-885, DOI: 10.1177/1078087408326973
29 Pages Posted: 4 May 2012
Date Written: 2009
Abstract
Much of the research on police-citizen relations has focused on adults, not youth. Given that adolescents and particularly young males are more likely than adults to have involuntary and adversarial contacts with police officers, it is especially important to investigate their experiences with and perceptions of the police. This article examines the accounts of young Black and White males who reside in one of three disadvantaged St. Louis, Missouri, neighborhoods — one predominantly Black, one predominantly White, and the other racially mixed. In-depth interviews were conducted with the youths, and the authors’ analysis centers on the ways in which both race and neighborhood context influence young males’ orientations toward the police.
Keywords: police-community relations, police misconduct, disadvantaged neighborhoods
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