The Center on Crime, Race, and Justice was thrilled to host Dr. Valerie Jenness on Thursday, March 27 for an entire day of discussion on her research, “Policing the Rainbow: Understanding LGBTQ+ People’s Perceptions of Police as “Friend or Foe”, Willingness to Report Crime, and Views of Police Reform”. Valerie Jenness is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Criminology, Law and Society, the Department of Sociology (by courtesy), and the Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing (by courtesy) at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) as well as the Chair of the Irvine Division of the Academic Senate.
Dr. Jenness’ work centers LGBTQ+ people and their experiences with and opinions of law enforcement and the criminal justice system. LGBTQ+ people experience criminal victimization at higher rates than the general population, report crime victimization to the police at lower rates than those who are not LGBTQ+, and have disproportionate contact with the criminal justice system. Her lecture delved into the historical context before situating her findings and detailing how responses vary by respondents’ sexual orientation, gender identity, race/ethnicity, and political affiliation.
Her lecture was sandwiched between a breakfast meeting with School of Criminology and Criminal Justice doctoral students and a dinner with choice CRJ faculty and CRJCAB members. Conversation during the breakfast meeting included details on Dr. Jenness’ professional journey and her takes as both a researcher and an administrator on how researchers and institutions can navigate rapid public policy changes as well as practical knowledge for doctoral students just breaking into the field.
Dr. Jenness was the second and final installment of the 2025 Schulman Distinguished Lecture Series. The CRJ is deeply grateful for the contributions of both Dr. Valerie Jenness and Dr. Marva Goodson to this event series and to the criminology and criminal justice fields at large.
