Abstract
The aim of this explorative quantitative study is to examine the culture of silence (also referred as the “no snitching” mentality) that exists in the African American Community. Such attitude encourages African Americans to be uncooperative with the police, in which explicit messages are present in some rap and hip hop lyrics, illustrated in music videos, and designed on clothing apparel that advocate for this behavior (United States Department of Justice, 2009a). African Americans compared to Whites and other minorities represent a disproportion number of victims of homicide and incarcerated adults in the United States (United States Department of Justice, 2006; United States Department of Justice, 2010). As the role of police is to keep communities and citizens safe, they are dependent on the public to help them solve crimes. (United States Department of Justice, 2009a). Through non-probability and availability sampling, the researcher surveyed 70 African American and non-African American students to determine if the respondents’ opinions about issues in the African Americans community and police, expectations and experiences varied by race. Using descriptive statistics and bivariate analysis, the researcher’s findings were that African Americans and non-African American students reported that they were likely to cooperate with the police to solve crimes, and they also perceived witnesses participation positively. This research has will help social workers in community settings and in the criminal justice system, researchers, policy makers, law enforcement officers and communities to better understand the no-snitching mentality to impact appropriate interventions to support health and social justice for all and to promote public safety in the African American community.