Stop and frisk, one of the most controversial policies in New York City policing, has been proven to unfairly target communities of color. In neighborhoods like Bushwick, which are predominantly non-white, it’s particularly important to be able to keep tabs on how and why stop and frisk is being used.
Thanks to publicly available data from the NYPD, we can do just that.
In 2017, there were 128 incidents of people stopped by cops in Bushwick. It’s a low number compared to other areas of Brooklyn, where the average precinct had around 145 stops.
However Bushwick saw a 15 percent increase in stops between 2016 and 2017. This is particularly concerning since the number of stops decreased by about 7 percent in both Brooklyn and New York City overall. It is worth noting that over the past few years, all areas of New York saw a substantial decrease in stops by cops. The number of incidents in New York City, and Bushwick specifically, was roughly cut in half between 2015 and 2016.
The numbers also illustrate a trend that has been known for a long time: stop and frisk disproportionately targets certain communities of color. In Brooklyn and New York City overall, 80 percent of stops involve a black or Hispanic man. In Bushwick, that number is even higher: Cops targeted black and Hispanic men in almost 90 percent of stops.
While this data is helpful, we still might not be getting a full picture of how often stop and frisk is used. Department audits estimate that around 73 percent of incidents in New York City aren’t reported at all.
That’s your fast fact of the week, Bushwick! Have a question about the neighborhood that you want us to try and answer using data? Leave a comment below!
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Cover image courtesy of Michael Mroczek