Donate
Back to articles
News

Study confirms racism and police brutality in Germany

DW report on a new study conducted by a team of criminologists at the University of Bochum. The main conclusion is that "people from ethnic minorities are structurally disadvantaged by the police." Police violence is experienced by many people in Germany, including at demonstrations and other mass events. However, members of ethnic minorities often experience brutality elsewhere, and a lack of evidence makes it difficult to bring complaints or prosecutions.
Date
16 November 2020
Topics
Coercion and control Discrimination and racism
Region
Germany
DW report on a new study conducted by a team of criminologists at the University of Bochum. The main conclusion is that "people from ethnic minorities are structurally disadvantaged by the police." Police violence is experienced by many people in Germany, including at demonstrations and other mass events. However, members of ethnic minorities often experience brutality elsewhere, and a lack of evidence makes it difficult to bring complaints or prosecutions.

Study confirms racism and police brutality in Germany (DW, link):

“Laila Abdul-Rahman, one of a team of criminologists who have been investigating police brutality and racism at the University of Bochum for the last two years, says it’s a typical case. She and her colleagues interviewed more than 3,000 people, some of them from ethnic minorities, for their study. Now, they’ve published their report. 

Tobias Singelnstein, who led the study, warns that the sample size was too small for the results to be generally applied across Germany. However, he is convinced that they give cause for concern and demand a more thorough investigation. The central conclusion of the study is that people from ethnic minorities are structurally disadvantaged by the police.”

And: Police violence in Germany: An underreported problem? (DW, September 2019, link):

“Police violence is a contentious issue in most countries, with Germany being no exception. A recent study suggests that there could be more instances of violence by law enforcement than official statistics show.”