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There have been many conversations on this board around the topic of racism and its role in the shooting deaths of black youths recently. It started with the Trayvon Martin case and now with Renisha McBride. I have consistently seen an unwillingness to even consider the notion that race was an influence on the outcome in these incidents. (The deaths of these young people)
We all know that how we perceive the world around us is informed by our past; as an individual by our personal history and as a member of society by our collective history. While I understand a reluctance to label someone a racist, we cannot deny the racist history of our country or the influence of that history on our perceptions of people of color. It seems unlikely that this prejudice, so long a part of our collective past, is not a factor in the perceived threat and the decision to pull the trigger in cases like the ones with Trayvon Martin or Renisha McBride.
I found this interview on NPR and felt that the thesis project it discusses ("Context, Race and Danger: The relationship between threat perception and the decision to shoot.") and the discussion around this topic represents this point very well. Here are some of the highlights:
…research focuses on the role of race in engendering a sense of threat - making people feel scared if they're presented with a target who is black rather than white - does that trigger a sense of threat? And the overwhelming conclusion of our work is that yes, it does. It triggers a sense of threat and that can prompt people to respond in a more hostile fashion.
We've run that test with thousands of people at this point. We've run it with white, black, Latino, Asian participants, male, female, young, old. We've run it with just tremendous numbers of people over the last 10 years.
I think that there are real issues in how we see each other. What we have to determine is how we react to what we see and not to react too quickly.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=245967473
Here is some information on the research:
… stereotypes of the “other” as dangerous seem to occupy a special role. In the United States, these stereotypes are frequently applied to Black people — particularly to Black men.
… we find robust evidence of bias, such that participants shoot an armed target more quickly and more frequently when that target is Black (rather than White), but they decide not to shoot an unarmed target more quickly and more frequently when the target is White (rather than Black). In essence, participants are faster and more accurate when targets conform to the cultural stereotype that Blacks are dangerous. Our initial work with this paradigm highlights the fast-acting influence of race on perceptions of threat, leading us to questions about the psychological processes that drive this bias ….
http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/rising/joshua-correll.html
Another contributing factor is the inequities prevalent in our criminal justice system. These inequities generate a disproportionate number of arrests and convictions of black men, and perpetuates the myth that black males especially are more naturally inclined towards violence and crime, which in turn feeds the fear that ends up creating this false sense of danger. The outcome? Innocent people are killed.
Some Interesting articles:
Blacks are Still the Majority of the Wrongfully Convicted http://www.blackvoicenews.com/news/...ill-majority-of-the-wrongfully-convicted.html
"Race corrupts decision making throughout our justice system, from lawmakers through judges, from jurors through witnesses, from police officers through community watch volunteers. Racial stereotypes shape what people perceive, what they remember and what they regard as just—and these biases combine in the aggregate to create massive disparities in our justice system
Young white offenders are more likely to be treated as “just kids”, whereas young blacks are treated as fully culpable adults."
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/its-group-life/201310/race-and-the-injustice-system
We are all responsible for creating and maintaining a safe and just society. If we as white Americans refuse to look at ourselves, then we perpetuate the problem of violence and conflict we see today. We will continue to be a part of the problem. This is not to provide blacks an excuse but rather the presentation of an opportunity to be part of a solution.
Please, at the very least, consider this idea. Consider the possibility that just as we have inherited characteristics from our nations past that we take great pride in, it’s conceivable that we have inherited ways of thinking that are destructive and require some genuine reflection and consideration.
We all know that how we perceive the world around us is informed by our past; as an individual by our personal history and as a member of society by our collective history. While I understand a reluctance to label someone a racist, we cannot deny the racist history of our country or the influence of that history on our perceptions of people of color. It seems unlikely that this prejudice, so long a part of our collective past, is not a factor in the perceived threat and the decision to pull the trigger in cases like the ones with Trayvon Martin or Renisha McBride.
I found this interview on NPR and felt that the thesis project it discusses ("Context, Race and Danger: The relationship between threat perception and the decision to shoot.") and the discussion around this topic represents this point very well. Here are some of the highlights:
…research focuses on the role of race in engendering a sense of threat - making people feel scared if they're presented with a target who is black rather than white - does that trigger a sense of threat? And the overwhelming conclusion of our work is that yes, it does. It triggers a sense of threat and that can prompt people to respond in a more hostile fashion.
We've run that test with thousands of people at this point. We've run it with white, black, Latino, Asian participants, male, female, young, old. We've run it with just tremendous numbers of people over the last 10 years.
I think that there are real issues in how we see each other. What we have to determine is how we react to what we see and not to react too quickly.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=245967473
Here is some information on the research:
… stereotypes of the “other” as dangerous seem to occupy a special role. In the United States, these stereotypes are frequently applied to Black people — particularly to Black men.
… we find robust evidence of bias, such that participants shoot an armed target more quickly and more frequently when that target is Black (rather than White), but they decide not to shoot an unarmed target more quickly and more frequently when the target is White (rather than Black). In essence, participants are faster and more accurate when targets conform to the cultural stereotype that Blacks are dangerous. Our initial work with this paradigm highlights the fast-acting influence of race on perceptions of threat, leading us to questions about the psychological processes that drive this bias ….
http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/rising/joshua-correll.html
Another contributing factor is the inequities prevalent in our criminal justice system. These inequities generate a disproportionate number of arrests and convictions of black men, and perpetuates the myth that black males especially are more naturally inclined towards violence and crime, which in turn feeds the fear that ends up creating this false sense of danger. The outcome? Innocent people are killed.
Some Interesting articles:
Blacks are Still the Majority of the Wrongfully Convicted http://www.blackvoicenews.com/news/...ill-majority-of-the-wrongfully-convicted.html
"Race corrupts decision making throughout our justice system, from lawmakers through judges, from jurors through witnesses, from police officers through community watch volunteers. Racial stereotypes shape what people perceive, what they remember and what they regard as just—and these biases combine in the aggregate to create massive disparities in our justice system
Young white offenders are more likely to be treated as “just kids”, whereas young blacks are treated as fully culpable adults."
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/its-group-life/201310/race-and-the-injustice-system
We are all responsible for creating and maintaining a safe and just society. If we as white Americans refuse to look at ourselves, then we perpetuate the problem of violence and conflict we see today. We will continue to be a part of the problem. This is not to provide blacks an excuse but rather the presentation of an opportunity to be part of a solution.
Please, at the very least, consider this idea. Consider the possibility that just as we have inherited characteristics from our nations past that we take great pride in, it’s conceivable that we have inherited ways of thinking that are destructive and require some genuine reflection and consideration.
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