Racially Neutral Policing?: Puerto Rican and Mexican Young Adults’ Experiences with Order Maintenance Strategies

Authors

Claudio G. Vera Sanchez, Roosevelt University
Jacinta M. Gau, University of Central Florida

Abstract

"Despite the proliferation of seemingly racially neutral police strategies, Latinos continue to report unfavorable views toward police. Limited attention has been given to how urban strategies, such as order maintenance policing, are experienced by young Latino males. The present study uses data from in-depth interviews conducted with male Latino youth in two Chicago neighborhoods: one majority-Latino, predominantly Mexican; and one mixed-race, gentrifying Puerto Rican. Results show that youth in both neighborhoods report enhanced surveillance and aggressive stop-and-frisks. Additionally, neighborhood context shapes the dynamics between police and young Latinos. In the Puerto Rican neighborhood, policing is enmeshed in culture clashes. In the Mexican neighborhood, policing is structured by a battle against drugs and gangs. The implications for order maintenance policing are discussed."

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Sanchez, Claudio G. Vera and Gau, Jacinta M. (2015) "Racially Neutral Policing?: Puerto Rican and Mexican Young Adults’ Experiences with Order Maintenance Strategies," Qualitative Criminology (QC): Vol. 3: No. 2, Article 2.
Available at: https://dc.swosu.edu/qc/vol3/iss2/2