Would stop-and-frisk fix inner city 'carnage'? Column
Trump supports practice that disproportionately targets blacks and Hispanics.
As promised, President Trump's inaugural address was short. So short, in fact, that many of the policy fixes he alluded to during his campaign were nowhere to be found.
The closest he got to mentioning his go-to fix for crime and clashes between cops and minority communities (tougher stop-and-frisk policies) was a reference to the "carnage" of inner cities. He said nothing about the flawed police practices that perpetuate that carnage and make it hard for those "trapped" mothers and children he mentioned to get beyond their circumstances.
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Would strengthening stop and frisk even work? If New York and Chicago are any indication, the answer is no.
The practice has been shown to erode trust between cops and the communities they serve and diminish already shaky relationships. New Yorkers up to the age of 25, for example, are less likely to report violent crimes (even ones for which they are the victim) the more frequently they are stopped by police. The likelihood of calling the cops dropped by 8% with each stop, according to a Vera Institute study published in 2013 (see graphics below for additional stats on the connection between stop-and-frisk and trust).
The practice has also been proven to target racial minorities. In Chicago, during a four-month period ending in August 2014, blacks accounted for 72% of the city's stops but only 32% of the population. Whites are also 32% of the city's population, but were only 9% of the stops.
What's the fix? What did you think of Trump's mention of inner cities during his inaugural address? Do you agree with his long-standing suggestion that stop and frisk will fix what ails cops and minorities? Some cops say using tougher tactics is sometimes necessary. Take a look at that data, below, then make your voice heard in the quick polls on this page.
