“Fucked up”: Examining Skin Tone and Student Perceptions of the U.S. Criminal Justice System

Abstract

This study examines how students across races and skin tones perceive the U.S. criminal justice system by analyzing interview data from 100 undergraduate and graduate students across the United States. Results demonstrate the complexity of student perceptions as well as the role that race, skin tone, and gender play in these perceptions. Specifically, students view the criminal justice system as functional, flawed, and “fucked,” expressing differences in their optimism for system reform. Related to skin tone, one of the study’s contributions to the broader field, darker-skinned individuals less often described the system as functional than their lighter-skinned counterparts. Individuals of all skin tones perceived the system as flawed. Implications for future research and practice are also discussed.

Keywords:

• Race
• perceptions
• colorism
• criminal justice system

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the Shades of Justice research team, the participants who share their voices, and Linda Phiri, for her contributions to the analysis.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.