Why it matters: Nationally, over 15% of law enforcement is black — a bigger share than the black U.S. population. But there’s no hard evidence that improving diversity alone leads to fewer deadly interactions with the police.

The big picture: Like other changes intended to end police brutality — such as better training and changes to the law — representative police forces are just one step, criminal justice reform advocates say.

“Adding black people to a police force is a good start, but there is a deeper issue,” Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, said in an emailed statement to Axios.

“We need to evaluate the culture of police departments, we need to look at the conduct of problematic police officers, and we need to ensure that training police officers entails de-escalation tactics,” says Johnson.