“People That Look Like Me Commit Crime”: Racial Beliefs Among Campus Police Officers

Abstract

ABSTRACT Research and news stories document harmful, racialized encounters between campus police and minoritized populations. However, little is known about how campus police officers perceive racial dynamics in their work. As part of a critical case study of campus police at one historically white private university, theories of racial ideology guided the analysis of interviews with 32 campus police officers. In response to allegations of racial discrimination, officers minimized and denied explicitly racialized policing practices. The officers’ responses reflected a logic grounded in color-evasive and diversity ideologies. Their racial beliefs were shaped by factors that included individual identity, the campus police department’s commitment to diversity and equality, and the political and racial climate of the campus community. I argue that racialized campus policing cannot be reduced to individual officer bias and must be viewed as symptomatic of institutionalized racism in higher education and law enforcement. The study concludes with recommendations for campus police policy and practice.