Project holders

• Magda Boutros (CRIS, Sciences Po)
• Aline Daillère (CESDIP, Université Paris-Saclay)

Project description

This project examines the experiences of racialized and impoverished young men with the police, to analyse their impact on avoidance of the judicial system. While much research has demonstrated that these groups are disproportionately targeted by police, our study examines both the coercive practices of the police, and the protection they offer these young men when they are victimized. Starting from the hypothesis of a dynamic of over-policing and under-protection, we seek to understand how this dual experience of the police contributes to non-access to justice or to forms of self-justice. The research proposes a relational approach that analyses both sides of the interaction. First, we situate the institutional practices of overpolicing and underprotection within an ecology of local relations, in order to understand how different actors (municipality, social housing agencies, residents, etc.) contribute to orienting police action. Second, we analyse the consequences of these experiences for young men’s perceptions of judicial institutions, and for their avoidance of the judiciary. The project is based on interviews, observations, and written sources collected in three field sites.

This project is related to the LIEPP's research group Discriminations and category-based policies.