The Disproportionate Overrepresentation of Minority Youth in ...

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could single out a group that they thought was discriminated against. Most of them felt
that the police show a bias against blacks, poor people, previous offenders, youth in
general, or some combination of these groups.
Several whites mentioned that the police will listen to rich people more than poor
people. As one 15 year old male stated: “They could treat some rich guy nicer than a
poor guy.” Another felt he had been arrested because of his reputation, “They think they
can do anything that they want.” A black youth, who had an otherwise positive view of
the police, felt he was arrested simply because of his past record. This youth was the only
one arrested at the scene of a disturbance and felt he was only taken in because “they
didn’t want to go home empty handed.”
Most of the white youth believed the police pick on young people. In the closed
ended section, 75 percent responded that police sometimes pick on young people (Tables
3, 4). And yet, the impression given in the interviews is that many whites feel it happens
more than sometimes, indeed that it is a constant occurrence. Many of the youth felt the
only reason they had been noticed was because of their age. A 14 year old white male,
when asked who the police pick on, said: “Kids and teen-agers . .
they don’t care how they treat them. But if it was an older person, they’re all nice to them
and things.” A 17 year old male offered this perspective on why the police single out
youth: “I don’t think they pick on them. I think they’re just more hard on them so they
won’t ruin their lives.”