Black Supporters of Racial Profiling

• Author: Kideste M. Wilder-Bonner,George E. Higgins,Shaun L. Gabbidon
• DOI: 10.1177/0887403412442890
• Published date: 01 July 2013
• Date: 01 July 2013
• Subject Matter: Articles

Criminal Justice Policy Review

24(4) 422 –440

© 2012 SAGE Publications

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DOI: 10.1177/0887403412442890

cjp.sagepub.com

442890CJP24410.1177/0887403412442890G

abbidon et al.Criminal Justice Policy Review

1Penn State Harrisburg, Middletown, PA, USA

2University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA

3Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, USA

Corresponding Author:

Shaun L. Gabbidon, School of Public Affairs, Penn State Harrisburg, 777 West Harrisburg Pike, Middletown,

PA 17057, USA.

Email: slg13@psu.edu

Black Supporters of Racial

Profiling: A Demographic

Profile

Shaun L. Gabbidon1, George E. Higgins2

and Kideste M.

Wilder-Bonner3

Abstract

As an anomaly of extant literature that maintains Blacks as a collective are less

supportive of racial profiling than other ethnic groups, this ar ticle explores the

backgrounds of Blacks who support the practice of racial profiling (referred to as

Black Supporters). This study analyzed a national Gallup poll that included measures

on profiling and had a significant number of Black respondents (N = 534). Black

Supporters tended to be female; live in the Southern United States; and be politically

conservative. Although multivariate analyses revealed few differences between Black

Supporters and nonsupporters, the study represents an earnest attempt to explore

Black support for a policing strategy that has both historically and contemporarily

had negative effects on Black communities. We conclude the article by discussing the

benefits of studying Black Supporters.

Keywords

public opinion, race, racial profiling, Black Supporters

Introduction

The last decade has seen a meteoric rise in the scholarly interest in racial profiling.

This increased scholarly interest has produced considerable research that has investi-

gated racial profiling from nearly every angle (Del Carmen, 2008; Gaines, 2006;

Article

Gabbidon et al. 423

Greenleaf, Skogan, & Lurigio, 2008; Harris, 1999, 2002; Higgins, Vito, & Walsh,

2008; Novak, 2004; Rice & White, 2010; Russell, 1999; Withrow, 2006, 2010;

Worden, McLean, & Wheeler, 2012). In most instances, the debate has inevitably

morphed into methodological discussions about how best to study racial profiling

(see, for example, Engel, 2008; Grogger & Ridgeway, 2006; Persico & Todd, 2008).

An additional area that scholars have pursued has been public opinion on racial profil-

ing (Weitzer & Tuch, 2002, 2005). In general, researchers have investigated public

support for the practice of racial profiling, public perceptions of its prevalence, as well

as personal and vicarious experiences with racial profiling. This, too, has led to an

abundance of research that has attempted to sort through the nuances of public senti-

ment regarding racial profiling.

Within the growing literature on the topic, there has emerged a consistent set of

findings related to public opinion on racial profiling. Most notably, Blacks followed

by Hispanics are more likely than Whites to believe that racial profiling is widespread,

and less likely than Whites to believe the practice is justified (Higgins, Gabbidon, &

Vito, 2010; Reitzel, Rice, & Piquero, 2004; Rice, Piquero, & Reitzel, 2005; Reitzel &

Piquero, 2006). To our knowledge, not one study has deviated from these findings. In

addition, there have been equally obstinate findings regarding those groups that are

more likely to report that they have experienced profiling. This is not surprising, as

Blacks and Hispanics have unfailingly reported being racially profiled more than

Whites (Weitzer & Tuch, 2006), with African Americans reporting the highest rates of

racial profiling (Higgins et al., 2010; Weitzer & Tuch, 2005).

Views toward racial profiling are often confounded by the perceived prevalence of

the practice, that is whether one has personally experienced racial profiling, has vicari-

ous knowledge of such encounters, and/or believes racial profiling to be widespread

(Brunson, 2007; Reitzel & Piquero, 2006; Weitzer & Tuch, 2005). The racial hierarchy

of disapproval for racial profiling, that is, Blacks followed by Hispanics and then

Whites, is not surprising and is consistent with research on attitudes toward, and expe-

rience with police more broadly (Bass, 2001; Barlow & Barlow, 2002; Fagan &

Davies, 2000; Sampson & Jeglum-Bartusch, 1998; Weitzer & Tuch, 2002). There is,

however, one trend that has also been consistently found in public opinion on racial

profiling—that there are Blacks who believe that racial profiling is not widespread and

support its use to identify criminal activity. We refer to these individuals as Black

Supporters, and they are the focus of this article.

Typically, public opinion researchers who study racial profiling conduct analyses

that produce respondents who might be considered the invisible Black minority. The

term invisible, we believe, best reflects their current status in the established public

opinion literature on racial profiling. In short, no one really knows who they are and/

or why they support profiling. Our research examined data that can answer the first

question, but we rely largely on speculative insights as to why they might be support-

ers of such a practice. Our focus is limited to Blacks as their experiences with racial

profiling predate that of other racial minorities.