Perceptions of Street Safety and Policing in Halifax, Canada

• In Event: Fear of Crime Across Community Contexts

Abstract

In contrast to the predominantly urban-centric focus of criminological research on policing and street crime, we examine how both urban and rural residents living in the Halifax Region of Nova Scotia, Canada, imagine street safety, and how their perceptions of safety and danger are impacted by police presence. Two significant, recent events have shaped their perceptions: the revelation that Black residents, many of whom have not been involved in any criminal activity, have been disproportionately stopped by police in Halifax as part of a street check; and a mass shooting by someone impersonating a police officer in one of the region’s most rural areas. Through a mix of participant-produced drawings and interviews, respondents discussed how their imagination and lived experiences of the street were entangled with their memories, media consumption, situated knowledges and sentiments. Our research findings challenge the urban/rural binary that simply associates urban dangers with Blackness, and rural streets with safety and whiteness. The rural streets perceived as safe for many white residents are not necessarily perceived as safe for Black residents. On rural streets, the dangers of anti-Black racism and racialized policing practices remain invisible to many white residents because they fall outside of their lived experiences.

Authors

• Anita Lam, York University

• Timothy Bryan, University of Toronto Mississauga