Decoded: Breaking Down The Myth Of Black Criminality
Dr. Travis L. Dixon explains how the case of Karmelo Anthony showcases the ways the media fuels stereotypes about Black criminality.
Black News 
One of the most enduring stereotypes of Black people is that we’re inherently criminal – a perception that has ruined the lives of so many young Black men. This week’s Decoded breaks down why the stereotype exists, who perpetuates it, and the real-world consequences it’s had for Black people.
The perception that Black people are inherently criminal is called “cognitive accessibility,” according to Dr. Travis L. Dixon from the University of Illinois. Cognitive accessibility is how we perceive groups as part of a mental construct.
“Basically, if you think about Black people, they’re part of this mental construct, and we have different kinds of traits that are associated with them,” Dixon explains in the video. “One of those traits is criminality.”
Dixon goes on to say that there have been studies proving this bias, where a person will be told that a person has committed a criminal act without initially telling them the race of the perpetrator. When asked whether the criminal should be given a second chance and then told the criminal’s race, the study found that people’s answers changed depending on the race.
“What happens is, if we say that person is Black, people are like, ‘yeah, throw away the key. They’re incorrigible. Don’t give them another chance…They’re naturally horrible,’” Dixon explains. “When they are white, people are like ‘give him a chance, they’re young…give them another opportunity.’”
Unfortunately, those biases can be seen in our criminal justice system. A study by the United States Sentencing Commission found that Black men receive sentences that are 13.4% longer than those of white men who were found guilty of similar crimes.
The media plays a large role in keeping the perception of Black criminality alive. One of the myths that the media has long promoted is that Black families are inherently broken, with Black fathers in particular not being present in their children’s lives.
“The reality, which I should say sometimes surprises Black people, is that it’s way more common for Black fathers to be involved at some level with their kids. But the media shows it the other way,” Dixon explains.
The case of 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony has seen all these stereotypes come to bear. Last year, Anthony got into an altercation with 17-year-old Austin Metcalf, who was white. After Metcalf repeatedly shoved Anthony, Anthony responded by stabbing Metcalf in the chest, killing him. It is a tragic story all around, but the right-wing media wasted no time in framing the killing as an example of Black people’s inherent criminality. This was especially prevalent among podcasts and social media influencers who are financially incentivized to say the most incendiary things, regardless of whether they’re true.
From Karmelo Anthony, Iryna Zarutska, and Laken Riley, anytime a Black or brown person commits a crime, it becomes an indictment of the entire race, which only amplifies the preexisting cognitive accessibility about Black people being inherently criminal.
For more on cognitive accessibility and how the media perpetuates stereotypes about Black criminality, be sure to watch this episode of Decoded.
SEE ALSO:
Decoded: Keisha Blain On The Erasure Of Black History
Free Speech In ‘America’ Has Never Fully Belonged To Black People
