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Race, Neighbourhood Context and Perceptions of Injustice by the Police in Cincinnati

Department of Criminology, University of Pennsylvania, McNeil Building, 3718 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6286, USA, johnmm{at}sas.upenn.edu

Robert J. Stokes

Department of Culture and Communication, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA, stokes{at}gmail.com

Greg Ridgeway

RAND Corporation, 1776 Main Street, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138, USA, gregr{at}rand.org

K. Jack Riley

RAND Corporation, 201 North Craig Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-1516, USA, jack_riley{at}rand.org

Research has long identified racial differences in perceptions of criminal injustice. Given that race is confounded with neighbourhood context, it remains unclear the extent to which individual or neighbourhood attributes explain racial differences in these perceptions. This paper advances research on racial differences in perceptions of unjust police practices in the US by relying on a survey of 3000 residents in 53 Cincinnati neighbourhoods. A propensity score weighting approach is used to identify a model by which Whites and Blacks living in similar neighbourhood environments can be compared with each other. The results demonstrate that race remains a significant predictor of perceptions of unjust police practices, even after taking into account the ecological structuring of neighbourhoods and their perceived environmental context. These findings suggest that racial consciousness with regard to perceived injustices by the police is not purely a condition of personal or structural disadvantage. The implications of these findings for police reform efforts to mend minority relations in urban cities are discussed.

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