ERIC Number: EJ1443520
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 31
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-1546
EISSN: EISSN-1538-4640
"People That Look Like Me Commit Crime": Racial Beliefs among Campus Police Officers
Journal of Higher Education, v95 n7 p848-878 2024
Research and news stories document harmful, racialized encounters between campus police and minoritized populations. However, little is known about how campus police officers perceive racial dynamics in their work. As part of a critical case study of campus police at one historically white private university, theories of racial ideology guided the analysis of interviews with 32 campus police officers. In response to allegations of racial discrimination, officers minimized and denied explicitly racialized policing practices. The officers' responses reflected a logic grounded in color-evasive and diversity ideologies. Their racial beliefs were shaped by factors that included individual identity, the campus police department's commitment to diversity and equality, and the political and racial climate of the campus community. I argue that racialized campus policing cannot be reduced to individual officer bias and must be viewed as symptomatic of institutionalized racism in higher education and law enforcement. The study concludes with recommendations for campus police policy and practice.
Descriptors: Private Colleges, Predominantly White Institutions, School Safety, Police, Security Personnel, Racial Discrimination, Discipline Policy, Diversity (Institutional), Racial Attitudes, Educational Environment
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A