“It Makes Me Feel Like the World Hasn't Changed a Lot.” Exploring Early Perspectives in Law Enforcement

• In Event: Rutgers at 50: Problems of Racial and Social Injustice

Abstract

This qualitative study explores how childhood experiences shape attitudes towards law enforcement among 40 Black and Latinx pre-adolescents aged 9-11 in Newark, New Jersey. In-depth interviews examine perspectives on police legitimacy and relations between law enforcement and communities of color. Findings reveal complex dynamics leading children to feel estranged from legal systems despite some initial positive views. Repeated exposure to unfair treatment, messages about societal discrimination, and growing critical awareness solidified distrust. Traumatic personal encounters with police aggression bred lasting vulnerabilities and emotions like anger or fear that reinforced social narratives warning minorities to be wary in interactions. Overall, problematic socialization processes, viewership of police violence videos, and unreconciled trauma from discriminatory incidents combined to foster legal cynicism and eroded legitimacy early on. The research has implications for understanding the roots of estrangement and highlighting needs for trauma-informed, dignity-affirming reforms targeting developmental harms inflicted through legal institutions meant to provide safety.

Author

• Chris Chukwuedo, Rutgers University - Newark & New Brunswick