Shopping While Black: Retail Racism in the United States
In this talk, Shaun Gabiddon will examine racial profiling that occurs in retail establishments.
Currently referred to
as “shopping while Black,” this discriminatory practice has a long history in the
United States. Tracing its origins to the slave-era “Black-thief” stereotype, the research
examines the nature, extent and current forms of the practice in modern day America.
This examination includes a review of the theoretical foundations best used to understand
the practice as well as a review of Gabiddon's two decades of research on the
topic. Potential approaches to reduce the prevalence of the practice will also be
discussed.