The Unwritten Headlines: Police Brutality and Black Women

Ten Years After #SayHerName News of Police Violence Often Fails to Center Black Women  

The African American Policy Forum and the Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies launched the #SayHerName campaign in 2014. Where are we now? image credit: Shutterstock 

Black women experiencing police brutality don’t make headlines as frequently as Black men. Discussions about police violence rarely include narratives from Black women. Moreover, police violence in the Black community is a public health issue. It is imperative to dive into how Black women directly and indirectly experience police violence.  

Police Violence Videos with Black Women Rarely Go Viral 

In an interview by law professor and founder of Columbia’s Center on Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies (CISPS), Kimberlé Crenshaw discusses what police violence against Black women and girls looks like. Crenshaw  shares stories of Black women experiencing brutality, even death, at the hands of the police. One woman by the name of Natasha McKenna was violently pulled out of her jail cell while naked. She was tackled and tased multiple times and then moved to a restraint chair. McKenna suffered cardiac arrest, lost consciousness and died five days later. Crenshaw describes other videos showing Black women being beaten on the side of the road, dragged and hogtied and thrown to the ground. Although these videos exist, they fail to reach the same level of public visibility that those of Black men being targeted by police do.   

When it Comes to Rape, Police (Shockingly) Rarely Police Themselves   One commonality Crenshaw points out is the sexual abuse Black women face in police custody. Many Black women pointed out that they have been sexually abused by police offers. Crenshaw reported that 2/3 of American police departments do not have any policies that address sexual abuse where police officers are the perpetrators.  According to her, there are many socially marginalized women who experience many types of sexual violence by law enforcement and their cases will never be heard or prosecuted.  

Too Often “The Talk” Fails to Center Black Girls  

In Marilyn Shantey Buford’s dissertation on Black Women’s Experience with fearful Encounters with the Police, she points out that within the Black community, there needs to be more awareness of how police specifically target Black girls and women.  The article calls attention the intraracial (something happening within the same race) perceptions of police violence against Black women. “The talk” many Black families have with their children about police brutality against Black people often centers Black boys because they are seen as the true target. The conversation rarely holds space for what Black girls and women face in police custody, neither is there mention that Black women are 1.4 times more likely to be killed by the police than white women. With this narrative, families and particularly young Black girls don’t realize how they too are targeted by the police, and how they might be especially targeted because of the combination of their race and gender.  

The Constant Threat of Police Violence Brings Health Hazards  

It’s important to note how the trauma Black women experience in the present can have an impact on their long-term health and, subsequently, overall quality of life. An article by the National Library of Medicine and the National Institute of Health lays out some of these impacts. There are psychological health determinants regarding the police that impact Black women’s health such as witnessing and experiencing police violence, worrying about becoming a victim and hearing stories about dangerous police encounters. These factors have been linked to other health hazards such as pregnancy loss, psychological stress and even lack of sleep. There are long-term health consequences associated with these health risks that people might not even realize are connected to a previous state of worry about police violence. Some of these include a higher risk of diabetes, hypertension, obesity, an increase in stress and inflammation, high blood pressure and cardiovascular reactivity. Exaggerated cardiovascular reactivity is linked to higher rates of cardiovascular disease, which we know is a disease disproportionately prevalent in the Black community.  

Overall, the harassment, violence, and sometimes death Black women face in police custody has many physical, psychological and physiological immediate and long-term health impacts. It’s crucial we remember and acknowledge the nuanced realities Black women face in police interactions. Let’s remember to not only say their names but remember their stories.