In just the past six months , there have been at least three instances in the United States of fatal police shootings of black people who witnesses said were trying to interrupt an active shooting.

In each episode, the putative “good guy with a gun” was a lawfully armed black man whom officers mistook for the gunman, raising questions about police perceptions of black gun owners.

We would like to learn more about the interactions that black gun owners — including those who use guns for work — have with law enforcement officers, with other authorities and with the general public.