The Expansion of the Police Reform Discussion: LatCrit and the Latinx Community

• In Event: Roundtable: Reforms in Law Enforcement

Abstract

Much of the debate around police reform in the United States maintains a Black and white dichotomy. Issues on police reform are spoken of through this racial binary. The dichotomy as it stands today is mainly due to the decades of work done by Black community activists and scholars to reform policing. As the Latinx population grows, and given our lack of knowledge on the relationship between the Latinx community and the police, it is important we analyze the lack of inclusion of broader racial and ethnic diversity in police reform debates. Through the use of Latina/o Critical Race Theory (LatCrit), this article examines the persistence of a racial dichotomy in discussions on police reform and argues that there needs to be an expansion beyond the Black and white binary. Through a qualitative analysis of data, including observations, documents, and interviews, this study shows a glaring gap in the literature on the ties between the Latinx community and the police. As we reconsider the relationship between the police and the community, this article will highlight the complexity and frequent oversight of Latinx people, which can provide greater insight into our public debates around police reform.

Author

• Anthony Bencomo, University of California, Santa Cruz