Fort Wayne always ranks high in surveys about quality of life and cost of living.
And during the last decade, the Fort Wayne Metropolitan Human Relations Commission has investigated more than 4,000 complaints of discrimination.
On Monday, the Metro Commission unveiled the results of the new Fort Wayne Employment, Housing, and Public Accommodation study.
The study was conducted with the help of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics and the Purdue University Fort Wayne Community Research Institute.
According to the survey, 80 percent of Black individuals polled said they experienced unfair treatment at work they believed was tied to race or ethnicity, compared to only 7 percent of White employees.
Only about 27 percent of those who had such experiences reported filing a complaint, according to the study.
The survey polled 800 adults located in Fort Wayne between the ages of 18 and 65. The interviews were conducted by phone in either English or Spanish. According to Metro, the population sampled represented Fort Wayne’s demographics.
Forty-five percent of those polled said they had experienced being stopped, searched and questioned by police unfairly, believing it was due to their race or ethnicity.
Community Research Institute Director Rachel Blakeman said the survey serves as the community’s baseline and shows what needs to be understood around Fort Wayne in relation to these issues.
"This was an entirely new survey designed for the particular needs of Metro, so we didn’t have a comparison data set at the ready," she said. "Clearly, historically disadvantaged or excluded populations in Fort Wayne are reporting unfair experiences at higher rates than their peers.
"For those who think protected-class discrimination is a historical relic, this survey tells us otherwise. I anticipate this survey’s findings will be useful to employers, housing providers, and many others to understand what is happening in Fort Wayne now as it relates to employment, housing and public accommodations. I look forward to how Metro uses this information to further their work as the local civil rights agency," Blakeman said.
Alisha Arrington, the chair of the Fort Wayne Metro Commission, said the data shows that action plans must be created.
The complete report can be found here. The summary is below:
