Racial Inequality in Firearm Homicide Victimization—but not Other Types of US Violence

Abstract

Abstract Research Question Is violent crime victimization among US minority groups higher than for White Americans in general, or is there a distinct failure of equal protection by race with respect to firearm homicide? Data This analysis examines per capita rates of violent victimization for Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites as reported in recent years in the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), as well as the firearms homicide data collected from local and state death certificates by the US Center for Disease Control (CDC). Method The analysis compares the extent of disparity between White and minority victimization rates for different kinds of violent crimes. The framework is to calculate the ratio of minority victimization rates to the White rates for the same offense categories. Findings While there are very small differences in victimization rates by race/ethnicity for most types of violent crime, and while Whites report higher victimization rates than minorities do for some kinds of violent crimes, there is a massive ratio for rates of firearms homicides. Black Americans of all ages, for example, suffer firearm homicides at a rate that is 12 times higher per capita than for Whites. Hispanic Americans are twice as likely to be victimized by firearm homicide than Whites. Conclusions Policing strategies often fail to distinguish different types of violence, even when discussing racial disparity in policing actions. The evidence of this report provides the most direct support for police increasing the precision of their focus on crime prevention efforts that can reduce homicide as the most important racial disparity in criminal victimization, and, in the US context, firearm homicide in particular.