Walking While Black: Drivers Show Bias Against Black Pedestrians

News research from the Wes Coast finds that drivers show a clear racial bias against black pedestrians, failing to yield for them at crosswalks. Seems like a minor racial microagression? Well, the researchers suggest that this treatment of black pedestrians might lead to fatalities. The Oregonian reports:

Conducted in downtown Portland, the joint Portland State University and University of Arizona study found that twice as many drivers failed to yield for black pedestrians than those who were white. Meanwhile, black pedestrians typically had to wait a third longer for cars to stop for them when they had the legal right of way.

With fewer motorists yielding for them, minorities are more likely to take greater risks to cross the street, which might factor into why they’re disproportionately represented in U.S. pedestrian fatalities, the study concluded.

“In a fast-paced activity like driving, where decisions may need to be made in a fraction of a second, people’s’ actions can be influenced by these subtle attitudes,” the study said. Read more.

What do y’all think about this research? Do you ever feel as though cars fail to yield for you because you’re black? We want to hear from you in the comments.