Covering racial-based protest movements? Michigan State has nationally renowned expert who can help with your stories and coverage

Covering racial-based protest movements? Michigan State has nationally renowned expert who can help with your stories and coverage

June 3, 20202 min read
Featuring:


The protests inspired by the tragic death of George Floyd have now touched every state in America. The protests have dominated the news and the world has been watching, sometimes in shock.


Jennifer E. Cobbina is an associate professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University. She has authored books on police protests and is highly regarded as an expert on these issues.  Recently, she was interviewed about police tactics, policies and how they might be adding fuel to the fire as opposed to de-escalating the tensions among protestors.



Jennifer Cobbina, a professor of criminal justice at Michigan State University, told Insider that protest policing in the 1960s and 1970s was "based on the philosophy of escalated force in which increasing violence on the part of protesters was met with increasing force from police. This approach was primarily aggressive and confrontational in nature."


"We see protest police resorting to this strategy" in the ongoing George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests, she said, even though such tactics "exacerbate tension between police and protesters."



Cobbina suggested police adopt the negotiated management approach that was favored from the mid-1970s until the 1990s. This response protects the right to free speech, tolerates some disruption, de-escalates tension, and avoids high levels of police force unless it's absolutely necessary.


This would allow demonstrators and police departments to "decrease disruptiveness from protesters and limit the need for police violence," she said.    June 02 Insider.com



If you are a journalist covering the protests occurring across America and various responses by police and authorities when handling them – let our experts help with your story.


Jennifer E. Cobbina is an associate professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University. She is an expert in the areas of race, crime, policing, as well as protest movements. Professor Cobbina is available to speak with media – simply click on her icon to arrange an interview today.


Connect with:
  • Jennifer Cobbina
    Jennifer Cobbina Associate Professor

    Expertise is in topics on race, crime, and policing; protest movements; and prisoner reentry

powered by

You might also like...