NDSC Report Reveals Discrimination in Policing
The Neighborhood Data for Social Change Institute (NDSC) released their latest data which included several important findings about policing in minority areas. Data shows that people who suffer the effects of over-policing overwhelmingly come from minority communities.
Many feel shock and renewed interest in police reform, following the report. “The data in the report surprised me,” USC Junior Dustin Hocmuth said. Many others have similarly reacted to the disproportionate rate of black people arrested by police in Los Angeles. Student have vowed to help change law enforcement practices.
After the release of the report, Gary Painter, Professor at the USC Price School and lead author of the study, did a question-and-answer session with the press. During the session, he emphasized the fact that the way people interact with police has changed. “The amount of police-initiated contact is down,” Painter said during the live session. A spokesperson for LAPD did not respond for the article. People call the police more often, but police tend to interact with people much less—according to the report.
Dr. Painter also said that the inspiration behind his ambitious project came from community partners in Los Angeles. The report takes away the emphasis in public safety from “crime and victimization and emphasizes community”, Painter commented. The report sought to fundamentally change the way people view public safety because many people had skewed perceptions.
The NDSC and USC Price School received funding from companies like Microsoft for the project. Instead of a crime and punishment perspective, Painter and his colleagues wanted to focus on the idea of community (a hot topic in many circles). Corporations took an interest in Painter’s findings.
Data gathering for the report took months, but the findings will serve generations of Angelinos especially in South Central. “The public can continue to advocate that public safety means something much broader than victimization and arrests,” said Dr. Gary Painter.
In a different session, Painter commented on how the public should react: “the public can use these findings to pressure law enforcement to reform their current practices.” Not just in Los Angeles but everywhere—people can use the findings from the report to help policing efforts.
The NDSC has long used data to influence public policy. The data-driven effort to understand public safety and law enforcement will continue at the USC Price School under Dr.
Painter’s leadership. Data journalists also have a particularly important role to play in sorting through much of the information from institutions like the NDSC. Dr. Painter emphasized the joys of working with the community. “The real fun part of this project came from working with our community partners,” Painter said. It was not immediately clear when the NDSC would release more data.
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