Abstract
The vast majority of research relating to encounters between the police and Black citizens happens in an urban context. Nearly no research exists on these encounters within a suburban context. Using various qualitative methods, Andrea S. Boyles chronicles the difficulties experienced by Black residents living in a predominately White suburb.
The setting for Boyles study is “Meacham Park, an African-American enclave of Kirkwood, Missouri” (p. xi), a predominantly White community. But the physical context of this research is only part of the story. This research occurs within a social context that may well become a turning point in the history of American policing. It is difficult to discount the effects of highly publicized police/citizen interactions that result in the death of a young African American man at the hands of a White police officer.
Boyles’ qualitative approach to this research is in stark contrast to the overwhelming reliance upon quantitative measures of police/citizen interactions. The racial profiling research agenda, for example, is denominate by proportional measures that allegedly prove the existence of discriminatory behavior within the routine enforcement practices of police departments. These approaches do not and cannot capture the essence, depth, and personal impact of police behavior from the perspective of the minority community. So, for this reason, Boyles’ research methods (interviews and participant observations) provide a rare glimpse into the qualitative dimensions of this important controversy.
The text includes an introduction, five substantive chapters, a conclusion/discussion, and an epilogue. Each of the substantive chapters covers a particular aspect of her findings. Chapter 1 (Race, Place and Policing in the United States) summarizes the historical, economic, legal, and social context of the controversy. Boyles demonstrates how past and recent events are internalize by members of the Black community. It is clear from the narratives produced by her interviews that historical events play an important role in shaping attitudes toward the police. What is interesting here is that key historical events do not seem to wane from the consciousness of Black Americans. Slavery, Jim Crow laws, segregation, and the Rodney King incident are as fresh in the minds of the African American people she interviews as recent events like Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo, and Sean Bell. Toward the end of this chapter, and further explaining the context of this controversy, Boyles includes some of the most important quantitative studies on attitudes toward the police.
Chapter 2 presents the history of Kirkwood, MO, and the Meacham Park neighborhood. Kirkwood is an affluent community, the Meacham Park neighborhood is economically challenged. The series of historical events that led to the creation, rise, and then demise of the Meacham Park neighborhood is a story not unlike that of many other communities that are populated principally by African American residence. The contribution of this chapter to Boyles’ thesis is that it provides additional context to the present state of affairs between the police department and the residents of Meacham Park. Boyles presents ample evidence of historical and structural differential treatment. The sense of differential treatment is exacerbated by Meacham Park’s proximity within an affluent community that is populated principally by White residents. She argues that differential treatment is the “… most salient reason for how and why blacks, especially poor blacks, come to have tense interactions with the police, and inevitably negative perceptions of them” (p. 92).
Chapter 3 discusses the political conflicts between the residents of Meacham Park and the larger Kirkwood community. These conflicts are exacerbated by differences in economic and political power between these two groups of citizens. Boyles’ inclusion of this relatively short chapter is important because it demonstrates that the conflict does not solely involve the police department.
In Chapter 4, Boyles tells the story of two tragedies that grew from years of “… denial, negligence, and in some instances revenge by … affluent, white government officials” (p. 134). These events were both shootings, one in July 2005, and the other in August 2008. One shooting led to the murder of a police officer at the hands of a Meacham Park resident who watched police officers do nothing as his brother suffered a fatal heart attack. The other shooting involved a rampage on city hall by a prominent Black businessman. This shooting led to the deaths of six people, including the businessman. The common thread in both of these shootings was long-term frustration with the City of Kirkwood and its police officers. Broyles inclusion of these tragic stories provides the mechanism she needs to demonstrate how vicarious police experiences affect attitudes throughout a community. The narratives clearly demonstrate a disdain for violence among the residents of Meacham Park. But the residents appear equally disgusted by the events that led these two men to commit these heinous acts. In short, events do not occur in a vacuum but have relevance throughout a larger community.
In the final chapter, Boyles discusses the various attempts to reconcile the differences between these two communities. As in other places, there were a number of half-hearted attempts and a fair share of litigation. Some attempts were nominally successful, but in the whole, the conflict remains. Importantly, Broyles does a very good job of explaining how complicated and intrinsic the conflict has become.
In the conclusion, Boyles discusses the current state of affairs within the Kirkwood and Meacham Park communities. Relationships appear to be better, but they are far from good.
The contribution this text makes lies in its devotion to capturing the stories of the people involved. Although the narratives are principally those of Meacham Park’s residents, the author does include pertinent stories from former Kirkwood leaders. This research required 2 years to complete. Few researchers would devote this much time to a study, preferring instead to merely collect quantitative data and produce statistical reports. Boyles’ attention to detail is impressive. Moreover, it is clear from her writing that she values the contributions made by each of the people she interviews.