Blacks and Whites' Views of Justice in America Topic of April 7 Lecture at Pitt

PITTSBURGH-University of Pittsburgh professor of political science Jon Hurwitz will deliver a lecture at the University of Pittsburgh titled "Justice in America: The Separate Realities of Blacks and Whites" from noon to 1:30 p.m. April 7 at Pitt's Center on Race and Social Problems, School of Social Work Conference Center, 20th floor, Cathedral of Learning, 4200 Fifth Ave., Oakland.

Hurwitz' talk is part of the Reed Smith Spring 2010 Speaker Series and is free and open to the public. Registration is not required, and lunch will be provided. For more information, call 412-624-7382.

Hurwitz specializes in the study of public opinion, voting behavior, political psychology, and racial politics. He also studies racial stereotypes and how those stereotypes may affect Whites' views of such political issues as affirmative action and public welfare.

For the past 12 years Hurwitz has focused his research on race and crime, and his book "Justice in America: The Separate Realities of Blacks and Whites" (Cambridge University Press, 2010), documents the differences among races in their attitudes toward the criminal justice system. His research shows how these differences may lead Blacks to be more suspicious of such criminal justice agents as judges and police officers.

The coeditor of the journal "Political Behavior," Hurwitz has written many articles that have been published in the "Journal of Politics" and the "American Journal of Political Science."

Hurwitz received a BA from Indiana University at Bloomington and a PhD from the University of Minnesota, both in political science.

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