While there is widespread agreement that race relations in the U.S. are in a sorry state, racial division exists regarding race relations' contribution to police violence. Multicultural groups in the U.S. are far more skeptical than whites about law enforcement's efforts to control crime. Also, Democrats are more disposed to mistrust law enforcement.

Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research recently published the results of a poll that captured the grim relationship shared by the police and communities of color in the U.S., and the fundamental role racial segregation and discrimination has played in affecting national views on the criminal justice system and law enforcement in the U.S. This report arrives after the publicized shooting deaths of countless individuals of color, murdered by police within recent months.

Whites and Republicans are far more inclined to positively evaluate the police and less likely to regard interactions between the police and the public as having any racial component. Also, while most Americans don't believe that the police has treated them unfairly, 2-in-3 black respondents reported that either they or a family member had been mistreated by the police due to race.

Forty-one percent of Americans believe a major reason for police violence against civilians is problems with race relations, causing police to treat people of color unjustly. Seventy-one percent of blacks and 57 percent Hispanics prescribed to that opinion, but only 30 percent of whites agreed. Also, 73 percent of blacks and 50 percent of Hispanics said poor relations between police and the public is a significant contributor to violence against civilians, compared to 45 percent of whites.

Only 8 percent of whites say they are extremely or very worried about being a victim of a violent crime, but that rate jumps to 20 percent for Hispanics and 27 percent for blacks. Just 16 percent of blacks believe that local police are doing a very good or excellent job at controlling violent crime, which is much less than the 42 percent of whites and 32 percent of Hispanics.

Blacks (81 percent) and Hispanics (63 percent) are likely to say police sometimes treat minority groups more roughly, compared to whites (47 percent). More than half of whites (52 percent) are under the impression that police treat all races and ethnic groups equally. Whites trust, more frequently than Hispanics or blacks, that the police have the best interests of the community in mind (72 percent vs. 45 percent and 72 percent, respectively).

Approximately 32 percent of adults said that police violence against the public in the U.S. is an extremely or very serious problem, while 33 percent said it is not at all or not too serious a problem. Nearly three-quarters of blacks (73 percent), half of Hispanics (51 percent) and a fifth of whites (20 percent) said violence against the public is very or extremely serious.   

The nationwide poll was conducted via online and telephone interviews during mid-July and 1,223 adults participated. Three-quarters of blacks and less than 20 percent of whites indicated that violence against civilians is an extremely or very serious problem. Also, half of all Americans, regardless of race, said that fear caused by the threat of physical dangers is a chief contributor to police officers' aggressive attitudes toward civilians.  

Among blacks and whites, there's a deep divide regarding opinions on race-related police violence. A large chunk of blacks believe that police are quick to resort to deadly force, and they're likely to use it against a black person. However, whites believe that officers only use deadly force when necessary and race isn't a factor. A large majority, 81 percent, of blacks say police use deadly force too quickly compared with 61 percent of Hispanics and 33 percent of whites.

Approximately 55 percent of Americans believe police use deadly force only when necessary, while 45 percent say police are too quick to use deadly force. Half said that police are more likely to use deadly force against a black person (49 percent) and half (48 percent) said race is not a factor). One percent said that police are more likely to use force against a white person.

Eighty-five percent of blacks indicated police are more likely to use force against a black person in most communities, compared with 63 percent of Hispanics and 39 percent of whites. Additionally, 71 percent of blacks said police in their own community are more likely to use force against a black person, compared with 47 percent of Hispanics and 24 percent of whites. Just a quarter of Republicans say police use deadly force too quickly, and less than 20 percent say they are more likely to use force against a black person in their community.

Half of black Americans reported being treated unfairly by police because of their race. Also, blacks and whites have differing opinions when it comes to believing that officers who injure or kill civilians are treated too leniently by prosecutors, and how that contributes to the continual use of force against the public.

The report found agreement across racial groups about the cause of police violence and the important policies and procedures that could be put into practice in order to reduce tensions, limiting violence dealt against civilians, regardless of race. Majorities of Hispanics, blacks and whites agreed that several procedural modifications can help prevent police violence against civilians. Seventy-one percent of respondents say that wearable cameras would be extremely or very effective in preventing police violence. Also, 51 percent said it would be extremely or very effective to require a special prosecutor to investigate when a civilian is seriously injured or killed by police. Also, 47 percent said to set stricter criteria for the use of deadly force.

Blacks are more likely than Hispanics and whites to see the positives of protests, however. More than half of blacks (51 percent) believe that protests bring attention to an issue in a positive way. At the same time, 59 percent of whites and 40 percent of Hispanics viewed protests as a negative.