John Levi Martin Jan Doering University of Chicago
Safety is a desirable public good that gives residents of different backgrounds an incentive to collaborate. Yet, issues of crime and safety can also be divisive, as residents of color (particularly African Americans) may feel exposed to an unjust share of the community's scrutiny and suspicion. This study investigates the causes, processes, and consequences of conflict and collaboration in grassroots public safety organizations in two interracial Chicago neighborhoods. Since public safety work may rally diverse residents around a common cause, as well as alienate them from one another, the case of public safety organizations allows for an investigation of community in the context of local safety initiatives, from peace circles to neighborhood watch patrols. Through a comparative design, this study isolates the causes, processes, and outcomes of conflict and collaboration across a range of grassroots public safety organizations. Three complementary strategies of data collection are employed: participant observation, in-depth interviewing, and the gathering of secondary data, such as organizational minutes and Census data.
Broader Impacts
The study contributes to the public discourse on perceptions of crime, race relations, and everyday life in diverse urban environments. Results will be shared with the wider public. In particular, strategies will be proposed for maximizing the inclusivity of public safety work while minimizing its divisiveness. These recommendations will be presented to civic leaders, community organizers, and policy makers.
Crime, criminal justice, and public safety are racially-charged issues in the United States. High-profile cases, such as the shooting of Trayvon Martin, reveal a substantial potential for racial division around this important issue. But safety also constitutes a public good, which all citizens desire and enjoy. In working to improve public safety, people of different racial backgrounds could build trust and relationships. Consequently, the issue of crime appears to have the potential to bring people together across racial lines, but also to alienate them from one another. How does either outcome emerge? This study examines the dynamics of collaboration and tension around civic initiatives to fight crime and prevent violence in two multiracial Chicago neighborhoods. I conducted over two years of fieldwork observing civic action, interviewing a total of 78 residents and local experts, and analyzing Census data and other sources of existing data. A real desire for community and collaboration existed among many residents. However, I found that local political actors exercised crucial influence in setting the stage for how residents engaged or avoided each other. Political conflict over crime and how to address it sometimes encumbered multiracial community and efforts to fight crime together. This occurred particularly when disagreements about crime meshed with other vital issues, such as questions of development and gentrification. However, even when the political climate was quite contested, individuals and community groups could override distrust by actively engaging in outreach. The findings from this study contribute to urban studies, the study of race and ethnicity, and politics. In addition to academically-oriented journal articles, I plan on writing a book based on this study that I hope will be of interest to a wide readership. The book will engage important questions of race, the politics of race, and community in the microcosm of multiracial neighborhoods.
