Now, when was the last time you consciously thought about jaywalking laws?! I mean, really considered how they affect you or your fellow road users; whether they be pedestrians or vehicle users? Often times, most people only think of jaywalking rules when pedestrians aren’t crossing at the designated pathways. But a deeper more troublesome reality exists for many who happen to be Back, brown or under-privileged. Ask any Black person and they will tell you the risks and concerns around ‘jaywalking’ still applies to them even when they are using the designated crosswalks as intended. Street and transit harassment occur in various ways and one areas of research that still lacks in contextual data is “racially motivated incidents.
Black people are more likely to take a defensive approach to any operations on public roadways -whether as drivers, riders, or pedestrians. There has been an intrinsic understanding that when crossing-while-Black one must proceed with EXTRA caution, even if you have the right-of-way. According to a study conducted by the Journal of Transport & Health, drivers of expensive cars are less likely to stop for pedestrians in crosswalks than people who drive lower-priced cars. The study also found that drivers, regardless of the cost of their vehicles, are more likely to yield for women and whites than for men and people of racial and ethnic minorities. These findings further support the sentiments around “driving, walking, or jogging while Black,” especially when law enforcement get involved.
In reality, Black people have intrinsically understood this principle way before it was validated by technical research findings. Jaywalking and many citations of “misuse of public roadways” cited by police are often underlined with racial and classist discriminatory practices and ideologies. Therefore, we must reconsider who is truly served by jaywalking laws. Jaywalking policies are problematic on many fronts:
- The concept of jaywalking encourages drivers to be aggressive toward pedestrians, and for third parties to ignore or excuse pedestrian deaths.
- Streets are often not designed to make walking safer or convenient.
- Pedestrians are almost as likely to be struck and killed at an intersection as mid-block, and those probabilities are higher for Black people.
- When pedestrians jaywalk, they are often behaving rationally; .
- Jaywalking laws are not enforced fairly; especially when coupled with stop-and-frisk policies.
People stopped for jaywalking are often confused about why they are being stopped -which increases the likelihood of volatile interactions with law enforcement. Often times, police interpret confusion as lack of cooperation and add on charges — like resisting arrest — or resort to use of force when people complain about being stopped on such a minor offense. But pedestrians who feel unfairly targeted have a point: these laws are enforced arbitrarily, with racially discriminatory effects to questionable safety benefit.
So the next time you experience or witness these incidents of abuse occurring, HARPit using the Harassment and Assault Reporting Platform (H.A.R.P). Also, please take a moment and complete the brief climate survey on police brutality perceptions.
