2022 Program and Presentations
2022 Attendees

Invited Address:

Unpacking Police and Community Relations and Lessons Learned in Los Angeles

Brianne Gilbert
Managing Director, StudyLA, Loyola Marymount University

In the wake of nationwide demonstrations for racial justice prompted by the murders of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and countless other Black individuals, Los Angeles has become a focal point for critical discussions around police and community relations. Loyola Marymount University’s inaugural Police and Community Relations Survey by the Center for the Study of Los Angeles (StudyLA) focused on the attitudes and opinions of adult residents of the city of Los Angeles toward the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) following this period of nationwide demonstrations.

With important implications as to how these results would play out, StudyLA navigated through one of its most challenging projects. The story of this survey and its corresponding data release describes how LA continues to grapple with many opposing and very vocal perspectives about policing, community relations, and DEI efforts in a city known for its historical issues with race relations. In this presentation, Brianne Gilbert, managing director of StudyLA and senior lecturer at LMU, unpacks the ups, downs, and lessons learned from this research and provides updates on the 2022 survey currently in the field.