Special Issue Introduction: Researching and Understanding the Intersection of Immigrants and Policing in the 21st Century United States

Abstract

The purpose of this special issue is to highlight recent research on the intersection of immigrants and policing in the United States, a traditional destination since time immemorial for immigrants from disparate parts of the world. The special issue aims to enhance understandings of immigrants and how they interact with police officers and policing in the United States. Instructively, while there is a host of immigration studies conducted in the United States as well as scholarship on the immigration/policing nexus, the body of work surrounding immigrants and policing appears to be limited and thus requires framing in a broader context to capture a wider range of immigrants’ perspectives on the policing of immigrants in the United States. This special issue addresses the existing lacuna by framing immigrants’ intersection with policing in the United States around a wide range of nationalities, including, but not limited to, immigrants from Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean, as well as on a host of immigrant specific issues, such as U Visa, sanctuary states and immigrants’ willingness to cooperate with the police. Regardless of the gender, nationality, age, and/or ethnicity of the immigrants reported upon in this special issue, the guest editors issue a call to action for organizations with a migration focus as well as scholars in the social sciences to systematically conduct research on immigrants and their interaction with policing as this has implications for immigration, police legitimacy, and social integration.