Submitted by Michael Mascarenhas on
Cities are simultaneously incubators of innovation and experimentation for sustainable societies and propagators of new forms of environmental injustice. Dog whistle policies like "law and order" have become an increasingly popular strategy of gentrification planning that has transformed the paradigm of urban planning in the public interest into one of urban development in the private interest. In the City of Berkeley California the Police Transparency Hub represents the city's efforts to use big data to document criminal activity in the city.
In this research, we will examine how the Police Transparency Hub documents and manages criminal data in the city. We will also examine the ways in which the data collected is a function of previous redlining activities within the city boundaries. We will also examine the ways in which the use of criminal databases are leading to new forms of environmental injustices in the city, including gentrification and redlining. Lastly we will examine how real estate agencies and mortgage and banking instituions use this data to make decisions about housing security and lending rates.
To collect data on the Police Transparency Hub and other forms of surveillance in the city. To research the rise and use of large municipal data surveillance systems. To examine how police and criminal enforcement shapes and is shaped by data. To research how end users, such as homeowners, realtors, mortgage and lending institutions, use crime data to make personal and institutional decisisons.
Interest in enviornmental justice. Preferably have taken ESPM 163 AC / SOCI 137 AC. Experience with literature reviews and data analysis.