As compared to white drivers, a Black driver is five times as likely to be stopped
by a police
officer. Black citizens report being stopped more frequently for minor violations:
forgetting
to use their blinker, a cracked windshield, a broken taillight. These frequent stops
have real,
often serious implications on the mental wellbeing of Black citizens, potentially
leading to
anxiety and short-term PTSD.
Known as racial profiling, this phenomenon has considerable importance to scholars
across the nation, including Michael Birzer, professor of criminal justice.
“Race intersects with policing,” Birzer said. “You can’t deny that. In fact, racial
profiling is a
normative experience, almost a way of life within communities of color.”
Enabled by a joint grant of $32,536 from the Kansas Department of Transportation and
the
Kansas African American Affairs Commission, Birzer conducted focus groups and
interviews of persons of color across Kansas, then distilled their experiences into
recurrent
themes in his 2012 book, “Racial Profiling: They stopped me because I’m…!” Its publication
earned him the 2021 WSU Community Researcher of the Year Award. He hopes to
implement these findings to improve police training on racial awareness.
Birzer, who served as lieutenant in the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department for 18
years,
continues to support the Wichita Police Department through various quantitative studies.
The department recently recognized him with their Outstanding Service Award for
conducting a randomized control trial that led to the establishment of a call center
in the
station for low-risk, low-harm reports.
He said, “Working alongside law enforcement practitioners to create sound research
can
change fundamental criminal justice policy across the spectrum.”