Policing Gentrification: An Exploratory Analysis of Stop-and-Frisk and Income Disparity in Brooklyn, NYC

Abstract

This work explores the correlation and spatial relationship between gentrification and stop-and-frisk policing in Brooklyn, New York City, from 2007-2014. Starting with a conceptual overview of the relationship between gentrification and policing, the analysis provides a direct empirical relationship between gentrification, measured as inmoving residents' income disparity to the area, and police stops carried out through the stop, question, and frisk policing program. Using mortgage-lending income disparity and stop-and-frisk frequencies, linear regression and fixed effects models show that median household income disparity has a robust, statistically significant, positive relationship to the share of stops in a tract in the year, accounting for the percent people of color, population, and percent white of mortgagelending applicants. Mapping the hotspots of gentrification and stop-and-frisk further shows spatial clustering and significant overlapping of the hotspots. Overall, this research indicates that gentrification and high frequencies of stop-and-frisk occur in the same spaces.

Keywords: gentrification, stop-and-frisk, policing, mortgage lending, income disparity, zero tolerance, spatial regulation, New York City, revanchism, urban redevelopment, hotspot mapping