Communicating Reproductive Coercion in the Context of Domestic and Family Violence: Perspectives of Service Providers Supporting Migrant and Refugee Women

The current study explored the language barriers to help-seeking in the context of reproductive coercion and abuse (RCA), domestic and family violence (DFV), and sexual violence (SV), drawing on observations by key informants supporting women from migrant and refugee communities. A lack of shared language has been identified as a key barrier to help seeking for migrant and refugee women experiencing DFV more broadly, though how language intersects with help seeking in the context of RCA is yet to be investigated. We conducted 6 focus groups with 38 lawyers, counsellors, and social workers supporting women experiencing DFV in Brisbane and Melbourne, Australia. Our findings address two main areas. First, consistent with past research in DFV, our participants identified language as a barrier for women when communicating about sexual and reproductive issues in the context of health and police encounters. More specifically, our findings suggest that the inability of health professionals and police to communicate with women who have low or no English proficiency not only negatively impacted victims/survivors’ ability to access support, but also facilitated the perpetration of RCA. We conclude that language can be a mechanism through which coercive control is enacted by perpetrators of RCA and health and policing systems may not be equipped to recognise and address this issue. We also suggest that greater conceptual clarity of RCA is needed within the DFV sector in order to tailor responses.

Police discretion in encounters with people who use drugs: operationalizing the theory of planned behavior

Background Policing shapes the health risks of people who use drugs (PWUD), but little is understood about interventions that can align officer practices with PWUD health. This study deploys the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to understand what influences police intentions to make discretionary referrals to treatment and harm reduction resources rather than arrest on less serious charges. Methods On-line surveys integrating TPB constructs and adapting an instrument measuring police intentions to make mental health treatment referrals were completed by police employees in Indiana, Massachusetts, and Missouri. They also included items about stigma towards PWUD and attitudes and beliefs about opioid addiction, treatment, and recovery. Findings Across the sites, 259 respondents perceived control over their decision to arrest for misdemeanors (69%) and confiscate items such as syringes (56%). Beliefs about others’ approval of referrals to treatment, its ability to reduce future arrests, and to increase trust in police were associated with stated practices of nonarrest for drug and possession and making referrals (p ≤ .001), and nonarrest for syringe possession (p ≤ .05). Stigma a towards PWUD was negatively associated with stated practices of nonarrest (p ≤ .05). Respondents identified supervisors as having the most influence over use of discretion, seriousness of the offense as the most influential value, and attitude of the suspect as the most important situational factor. The 17 Likert scale items analyzed had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.81. Conclusion The TPB offers untapped potential to better understand and modify police practices. In designing interventions to improve the health outcomes of police encounters with PWUD, further research should validate instruments that measure the relationship between these variables and discretionary intentions, and that measure role-relevant police stigma towards PWUD.

Young People Who Use Drugs Views Toward the Power and Authority of Police Officers

Many young people who use drugs are structurally vulnerable to policing powers given the ongoing criminalization of drug possession. Police authority limits and the expression of that authority may play a significant role in police encounters among young people who use drugs. This qualitative study explores the views of young people who use drugs toward police power and authority in their recent encounters with police officers. Interviews were conducted with 38 young people who recently used illegal drugs in British Columbia, Canada. We found five interrelated themes related to perceptions of police authority: (1) skepticism and distrust toward authority; (2) paternalism and authority over drug use; (3) officer use of force; (4) police as power-hungry; and (5) officers above the law. Participants described police authority as limitless, unpredictable, untethered, easily abused, and lacking accountability. Participants feared holding police officers accountable to power abuses in a criminal justice system that they saw as stacked against them. Moving forward, institutional reforms may consider and account for the expression, limits, and use of police authority among young people who use drugs and other structurally vulnerable communities.

Low Self-Control and Perceptions of Procedural Justice Among Urban-Born Youth: The Moderating Role of Officer Intrusiveness

The current study examines whether the link between low self-control and perceptions of procedural justice among urban-born youth is contingent on acts of officer intrusiveness. Data come from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and are restricted to youth reporting lifetime police stops at Year 15 ( N = 918). Findings reveal that the association between low self-control and diminished perceptions of procedural justice is significantly moderated by officer intrusiveness. To be precise, low self-control became more relevant in diminished perceptions of procedural justice as officer intrusiveness decreased. The findings carry implications for police-citizen interactions, including the training of police officers in developmental science and how low self-control may shape youth perceptions of police encounters.

I don't know you, Random Man: Adolescent female perceptions of procedural justice during police contact

<p>This study explored female adolescent perceptions of procedural justice during police interactions in New Zealand. Available research on youth and procedural justice, is male-focused or treats youth as homogenous. No recent research has investigated female interactions with police, although police are the gatekeepers to the criminal justice system, and the rate of female incarceration is increasing rapidly in New Zealand. This qualitative study is feminist-informed and employed semi-structured interviews of 11 female adolescents who had experienced police contact within the previous five years. Transcripts of these interviews were subjected to thematic analysis and three key themes were identified: invasion of space, communication of authority, and presentation of risk. The results indicate that gender dynamics do influence female adolescents in their navigation of these three themes, and thereby, impact their perceptions of procedural justice during police encounters.</p>

I don't know you, Random Man: Adolescent female perceptions of procedural justice during police contact

<p>This study explored female adolescent perceptions of procedural justice during police interactions in New Zealand. Available research on youth and procedural justice, is male-focused or treats youth as homogenous. No recent research has investigated female interactions with police, although police are the gatekeepers to the criminal justice system, and the rate of female incarceration is increasing rapidly in New Zealand. This qualitative study is feminist-informed and employed semi-structured interviews of 11 female adolescents who had experienced police contact within the previous five years. Transcripts of these interviews were subjected to thematic analysis and three key themes were identified: invasion of space, communication of authority, and presentation of risk. The results indicate that gender dynamics do influence female adolescents in their navigation of these three themes, and thereby, impact their perceptions of procedural justice during police encounters.</p>

Soundscapes of Resistance: Amplifying social justice activism and aural counterpublics through field recording-based sound practices

This article examines creative sound practitioners who audibly convey social justice commentary through their use of environmental soundscapes as source material. I discuss how micro-watt radio pioneer Mbanna Kantako, electronic music artist Muqata’a and audio activist Christopher DeLaurenti work with field recordings to produce subversive counter-narratives against news media and state discourses. I outline three specific sound projects as case studies: Kantako’s aural counter-surveillance of police encounters within the predominantly poor and Black neighbourhood of Springfield, Illinois; Muqata’a’s album Inkanakuntu (2018) composed using field recordings of Ramallah, West Bank; and DeLaurenti’s radio piece Fit the Description (2015) that incorporates field recordings of the protests following the 2014 police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. I argue that composing with soundscapes of contested urban spaces can function as sonic activism that confronts the oppressive soundscapes of systemic racism. The case studies are examined through the following common themes: 1) the use of what I term aural counterpublics to amplify marginalised voices and soundscapes of resistance, and 2) the radical re-appropriation of microphones and oppressive police and military audio technologies as a means of ‘speaking back’ to systems of power. Finally, I suggest how these case studies convey the need for intersectional and decolonised approaches to soundscape studies.

Prevalence and Effects of Daily and Major Experiences of Racial Discrimination and Microaggressions among Black Individuals in Canada

The prevalence and correlates of different forms of racial discrimination among Black Canadians are unknown. This article aims to examine the prevalence of different forms of racial discrimination (daily, major and microaggressions) and their association with self-esteem and satisfaction with life among Black Canadians. A convenience sample of 845 Black Canadians aged 15–40 was recruited. We assessed frequencies of everyday and major racial discrimination, and racial microaggressions against Black Canadians and their association with self-esteem and satisfaction with life, controlling for gender, age, job status, education, and matrimonial status. At least 4 out of 10 participants declared having being victims of everyday racial discrimination at least once per week. Between 46.3% and 64.2% of participants declared having been victims of major racial discrimination in various situations including education, job hiring, job dismissal, health services, housing, bank and loans, and police encounters. Significant gender differences were observed for everyday and major racial discrimination with higher frequencies among female participants. A total of 50.2% to 93.8% of participants declared having been victims of at least one episode of racial microaggressions. Results showed a significant negative association between racial discrimination and satisfaction with life ( b = –0.26, p = .003), and self-esteem ( b = –0.23, p = .009). This study highlights the need to stop colorblind policies in different sectors in Canada, and for a public commitment to combat racism at the municipal, provincial and federal levels. Implications are discussed for prevention, research and public health.