Lab Chat: How police killings of unarmed black Americans could harm black infants’ health
A new study finds police shootings of unarmed black Americans could also be harming the health of infants not directly involved in these incidents. Black mothers who were exposed to such events during pregnancy were more likely to give birth to infants who were born prematurely or with low birth weight. I spoke to Joscha Legewie, a sociologist at Harvard University and the author of the study, to learn more.
What did you find?
There’s a substantial effect of exposure to police killings during the first and second trimester on [low birth weight and gestational age]. This correlational link is very specific to police killings of unarmed black [people]. I did not find a similar pattern or similar effects on the gestational age and birth weight in infants of other races or ethnic groups, [or] on armed black Americans.
What do you think might be the underlying reason for these findings?
This very race-specific pattern helps me to, at least partially, rule out possible explanations, namely that this is driven by crime. The fact that this effect is concentrated among police killings of unarmed black individuals tells me that the stress and the perception of injustice is the most plausible explanation of this.
Read the rest of our conversation here.
What did you find?
There’s a substantial effect of exposure to police killings during the first and second trimester on [low birth weight and gestational age]. This correlational link is very specific to police killings of unarmed black [people]. I did not find a similar pattern or similar effects on the gestational age and birth weight in infants of other races or ethnic groups, [or] on armed black Americans.
What do you think might be the underlying reason for these findings?
This very race-specific pattern helps me to, at least partially, rule out possible explanations, namely that this is driven by crime. The fact that this effect is concentrated among police killings of unarmed black individuals tells me that the stress and the perception of injustice is the most plausible explanation of this.
Read the rest of our conversation here.
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