But, the recently installed Burlington police chief said, the same technology that allows law enforcement to respond instantly to emergencies also contributes to implicit biases.
“There’s a bias inherent to it that is fundamental to the workflow, fundamental to the ecology of that type of policing,” del Pozo said at the Saturday event.
While bias among police is a frequent subject of headlines, del Pozo and two other panelists said at the ACLU-VT meeting, it is not a problem of law enforcement alone. Biases in policing reflect biases ingrained more widely across society.
“Police are part of a cycle of bias that is part of a larger cycle of bias in society,” del Pozo said, going on to explain that the 911 model can perpetuate that pattern.
When police officers respond to 911 calls, they are often relying on limited information. Callers may give information that is murky and “doesn’t articulate a crime,” del Pozo said.
Someone may, for instance, call in about “three shady characters on a park bench,” del Pozo said. When the officer arrives, they have limited information to rely on — including the perceptions of the caller and their own perceptions, both of which may be shaped by implicit biases as they pertain to race, gender, age or other factors.
Meanwhile, because of workload, police tend to be pressed for time when they respond to a situation, del Pozo said. Altogether, the system creates scenarios that are vulnerable to influence by biases that people may not even be aware that they have.
The police chief is optimistic that law enforcement can be leaders in addressing bias on a societal level.
“You ask ‘are we all biased?’ Yes,” del Pozo said. “But the police are in that unique position where they can break the cycle or perpetuate it.”
The Burlington Police Department is constructing a community policing approach that del Pozo hopes will complement the 911 emergency response system.
By training officers to specialize in certain situations, such as domestic violence, some members of the Burlington police force will be equipped to respond to the nuances of those emergencies. The better officers are acquainted with members of a community, the more they will be able to overcome intrinsic bias, he said.
Karen Richards, executive director of the Vermont Human Rights Commission, emphasized the importance of increasing understanding among the public that everyone has implicit biases.
It’s possible to control those biases, but it requires conscious effort, according to Richards. In the meantime, attitudes among the general population extend through law enforcement, she said.
“Really what’s happening is the police are doing what we’re asking them to do,” Richards said.
In some circumstances, community policing is not enough, Richards said, referencing the Baltimore neighborhood where Freddie Gray, a black man who died after an altercation with police this year, grew up. There are larger questions of demographics, poverty and segregation, she said.
“These are huge problems that need to be addressed,” Richards said.
Maria Mercedes Avila, a University of Vermont assistant professor who specializes in racial disparities in health care, challenged Vermonters who say that Vermont doesn’t have issues with racial bias.
Bias does exist here, she said, noting that she has experienced it herself. Moreover, Avila said, discrimination becomes a matter of public health.
“We need to understand that when people are exposed to these issues for short or long periods of time, that is going to affect people’s health,” Avila said. “We know there’s a direct correlation between discrimination, oppression and ongoing bias and prejudices and how people are getting sick.”
During training with some 1,500 Vermont health care providers, Avila learned that many professionals are not aware of some federal laws about accessibility of health care. For instance, she said, not one person knew about Title 6 of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits programs funded by federal dollars from discriminating based on race or national origin.
Avila called for legislation to require training in implicit bias for health professionals, so that Vermont’s health care system is more sensitive and accommodating of cultural and linguistic diversity.
“We need a specific regulation or a specific policy,” Avila said. “Unfortunately, if we don’t mandate this type of work, things are not going to happen.”
