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In spring 2016, Open Buffalo administered the Community Policing Survey to 2,018 residents of Buffalo. Conducting brief, in-person interviews, surveyors engaged a truly diverse cross-section of the city population – men and women of different races, ages, genders, and class statuses, who reside in neighborhoods that span over thirty zip codes. They surveyed residents at grocery stores, metro stops, community events, neighborhood meetings, and other sites and venues across the city. The Community Policing Survey was also translated into Spanish, Burmese, Karen, and Nepali to reach many of the city’s foreign language speakers.

The goal of the survey was to talk with as many residents as possible, with special attention to groups that have had particular difficulties in police interactions, including people of color, youth, LGBTQ people, refugees, etc. Thus, the survey does not represent a demographic cross-section of the city. For example, 50 percent of respondents were black, whereas roughly 39 percent of the city’s population is black. Therefore, the survey should not be used to generalize about how the City of Buffalo as a whole feels about policing. However, it contains rich and useful information about how over 2,000 Buffalo residents feel about policing.

Data from the survey is summarized here.