Who Do You Serve, Who Do You Protect?

tags

Police

Notes

10. Big Dreams and Bold Steps Toward a Police-Free Future

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recognition of the actual function of policing in US society: armed protection of state interests

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goal should not be to improve how policing functions but to reduce its role in our lives

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Making incremental changes to the systems, institutions and practices that maintain systemic oppression and differentially target marginalized communities is essential to shifting power. Taking aim at specific problems and demanding change helps build power among repressed communities in ways that are more lasting and sustainable. Without a strategic long-term vision for change, however, today’s reforms may be tomorrow’s tools of repression.

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while advocates like William Bratton maintain that CompStat is crucial in decreasing crime rates, time has shown that these rates tend to initially decrease dramatically but then increase again

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The broken windows orientation underlying Bratton’s mode of policing, which also extended to CompStat, suggested that the very presence of suspicious persons was a danger to the community. Through CompStat, the police could demonstrate that they were neutralizing that danger.

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reflect on what asking for police accountability really means. Police forces tend to be very accountable to the interests they were designed to serve

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the best way to reduce the violence of policing is to reduce contact with cops.

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Taking incremental steps toward the abolition of policing is even more about what must be built than what must be eliminated.

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enable community members rather than the police to be called upon as first responders

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16. Building Community Safety: Practical Steps Toward Liberatory Transformation

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men in the community with standing—a minister, teacher, doctor, etc.—decided to intervene

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Violence and oppression break community ties and breed fear and distrust.

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creating safety means building meaningful, accountable relationships

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Relationship building doesn’t have to involve old-school door knocking. It can be as simple as attending community events, saying hello and introducing yourself to your neighbors, or inviting your neighbors to events that you organize.

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There’s a substantial distinction between having skills and learning skills, between being experts and practicing.

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the notion of instant expertise is contrary to our liberatory values

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While I didn’t believe that the state would bring justice in this case, I believe in supporting Black mothers.

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just as punishment does not transform behavior, neither does judgment.

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when we create a culture of judgment so thick that we make it impossible for people to speak about the struggles they face when they call emergency services or need to, there are critical impacts

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we must acknowledge that we have yet to build an alternative to 911

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