Survey: Biggest Problem Facing Philadelphia Is Public Safety
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The latest survey by the Pew Charitable Trusts shows public safety as the number one concern of most Philadelphia residents.
44-percent of those surveyed said public safety was the top problem facing the city.
Larry Eichel, director of the Philadelphia Research Initiative at Pew, says the survey also asked about confidence in police to treat blacks and whites equally:
"The increase was entirely among whites. Blacks and Hispanics basically gave us the same answer they gave us 18 months ago. So you now have a large and growing gap between blacks and Hispanics on one hand and whites on the other hand. It's in fact a 30 point gap."
Another question...how much respect do you have for the police?
"And 72-percent of Philadelphians said they had a great deal or a fair amount of respect for the police and that was up from the previous survey," says Eichel. "Up from 67-percent. And it was up among all groups. More among whites than among blacks or Hispanics, but it was up among all groups."
It also showed 39-percent of respondents felt unsafe in their neighborhoods, outside at night. Eichel says this number has remained relatively unchanged over the last two surveys.