Rally Call: No School Cops; Slash Cop $$

I hope that all officers are no longer assigned to all New Haven Schools. That will mean more police offices on the street locking up criminals in other areas.

And when there are crimes committed in schools the Board of Education can call someone else to handle the crime problems that exist in many schools.

Support law enforcement and try to remember that police brutality is awful but use of force to carry out the police officers job is necessary and needed. Never looks good but justified force is not police brutality. That was defined by fired officer Chauvin and the three stooges who did nothing,

So defund the police department by 33,000,000 dollars and give the money to the BOE, because they have done so well with their current budget, and the removal of all police officers from city schools, and here I thought that their demands were going to be unreasonable.

I'm all for removing police from schools but it has been a success in New Haven so why do it? Do you really want to have to wait for an officer if an incident like an active shooter occurs especially if your defunding then my 33,000,000. I doubt your counselors will have the ability to respond, but hey who wants police to have the ability to respond quickly during an incident like that.

It is an open question whether police officers or school counselors would be my useful in schools. This question should be addressed by the BoEAs it is, the BoE has a massive deficit, so it far from a sure thing that if funds now spent on police were given instead to the Boe, that the BoE would choose to add counselors while cutting other, existing staff.

So New Haven has had to cut back on community policing initiatives and walking beats because of budget crunch of the solution to getting a more community based force is to cut their budget by 75%?????

and Chris246, I hope I'm missing some sarcasm or something in your comment that the officers did nothing wrong and they were justified but it looks bad. If not, can you tell me how long after you discover a man does not have a pulse does he remain a threat requiring multiple officers to pin him to the ground?

These students should study the issues first. School resource officers are there to protect them and the staff. The spate of violence directed against schools beginning with Columbine and moving within our own state borders to New Town are real. We need both police resource officers and counselors. Many of the officers are graduates of our high schools,. They coach in youth leagues, and yes, they counsel students and families when they are the victims of crimes. This should not be a binary choice. Study the crime statistics in many of our neighborhoods and then come back and let me know what you will do with severe reductions in community policing. Your own chief is a Graduate of our schools. Be careful what you ask for. Better direct your efforts at registering all 18 year olds to vote so we can remove callous politicians starting with the election In November. We have a good police department and tell me the last time one of our officers killed anyone. Lastly, who is killing youth in our community? Please answer this question for me and offer a solution to stop the killing.

Oh come ON!

Slash out budget so our residents end up with no support?

Take them out of schools where serious issue arise daily?

Wake up. Cops are the reason any family wants to live in this city.

To Elm City,

The four fired criminals in Minneapolis got what they earned for themselves. Murder raps and a future of long prison sentences.

Use of physical force when effecting an arrest can be anything from handcuffing to a foot chase all the way to fighting with suspects. Use of physical force is different than police brutality. And it never looks good.

The cops in Minneapolis tortured and killed George Floyd and engaged i n criminal action (Chauvin) and criminal non action (the other three) and will pay the price. Once the suspect is cuffed the fight is over. Any police officer will tell you that or should.

If you're going to cut the NHPD budget by 75% and take funds from the pensions, you'll have to use the savings to build a wall around the city to encapsulate the chaos that would follow.

It is disarming to see a gun in a school, I can tell you that. It does NOT make me, nor my fellow teachers, feel safer.

There's no evidence that "School Resource Officers" make children or teachers any safer. And, even growing up as a white kid in a mostly-white suburb, the cop we had in our school made us feel more uncomfortable than anything.

Chris: I agree with everything you said in your 2nd comment. Apologies for misinterpreting your first

Although I recognize their demands, I would hardly give credence to yet another ineffective .org non profit group. If even half of these orgs. in NH did what they said they did NH would b utopia!! The NHPD is already unable to fill it's vacancies because of low wages and ineffective leadership; ticketing jaw walkers?? Yep never mind those pesky drug traffickers on Temple!!

I am so impressed by the students' initiative on getting the police out of their schools. Long overdue!
Lead and the people will follow.

However, the police need to be re-employed in work that supports community life.

Let's look at the real problem. The rich are rich because the poor are poor.

Now, let's start policing the rich who LOOTED (via their tax breaks and investments) the public coffers with the biggest heist in American history. That day was historic because it was the day that the largest amount of money was stolen working people, via 45 and the Congress, was moved to the super rich and the corporations who will enjoy this while the poor suffer more because of it.

What are the rich now doing with the money they stole from us?

We need to look into this and I am proposing that we establish a war on wealth by establishing a Council within the New Haven government to monitor and to put limits on how much New Haven residents can acquire.

I propose we call it the Council on Wealth Regulation and Management with the power to limit the amount of wealth any person in New Haven can possess.

The aim of the Council, in addition to Yale paying their fair share of taxes (isn't that illegal?), that money should go directly into our communities of need by working with local residents to direct what needs to be done.

Perhaps for starters we could ban private schools and make them all public and free.

Privatization leads to corruption!

We need to make places like The Union League affordable to working people.

We all need the level of healthcare that the rich enjoy...we need to spread out the wealth and raise everyone up.

By raising people up, they won't have to steal from others and cheat like the rich people do.

I agree with most of the proposals made by this group, but I think we should be very thoughtful about defunding the police department. The PD has already been substantially defunded because of the city's terrible financial condition. I believe it is now about 100 positions under peak strength.

As a result, the key community policing tactic of walking beats—which many people in the neighborhoods seem to value—has been sharply curtailed. The patrol division is occupied almost full time responding to 911 calls.

If we reduce the budget for police further, it will be unable to respond to 911 calls in a timely fashion. Is this what the people of New Haven want? I don't speak for the community (nobody does), so I'll just say that I don't see that as a desirable outcome.

It's pretty clear that all city services will be defunded significantly because of the COVID-19 crisis, among them police. At that point, the funding of the PD may be so low that it requires a major rethinking of how policing is done in the city, rather than just a shrunken version of the same model. Rethinking would be a good thing. Operating policing on a budget that is too small to do it properly would not be a good thing.

I suggest that the police leaders conduct a briefing that explains to the people how policing is done in the city and how the money is spent--and discuss the consequences of further defunding. Only with knowledge can we the people make suggestions that would be realistic and doable.

Of course, this would only work if people don't use the event as an opportunity to scream in the faces of police, call them names, and risk infecting them with the coronavirus. It would require open mindedness and good will from all sides.

@wesunidad: Maybe the rich are rich because they are harder working, more highly motivated, more creative, more industrious, better planners, more inciteful, more disciplined in school, and in their lives. Just saying.

I had another thought and want to amend what I wrote above. I think we're in a time of four crises--racism, COVID, wealth/income inequality, and climate change. They overlap quite a bit.

In each case, I believe it would be good for society as a whole, communities, and we as individuals to rethink of all of these things. It would be terrible if we return to "normal." We need to set off in new directions based on justice, equity, and global sustainability.

So I think the PD, political leaders and the people in New Haven should come together in a disciplined way to rethink policing--with an eye to developing a new philosophy and strategy, and, from those foundations, redesign operations.

I think this will only happen and work if people have a strong voice in shaping the police department of the future.

to owen@large

You said, "Maybe the rich are rich because they are harder working, more highly motivated, more creative, more industrious, better planners, more inciteful, more disciplined in school, and in their lives. Just saying."

I'm what most people would call rich and I work hard at it. It has taken some time, but I've found the right investment banker (he's white) and we have a lobbyist (she's white) that we know will be able to expand my portfolio immensely.

I invest in hedge funds and directives for white owned companies only. And, with the 2017 tax break that 45 gave us, I'm good for another 10 years of tax free living. It's hard work, but we rich are known for our hard work!

Motivated? Yes, where can I get a good deal on a new Mercedes? I've been looking for awhile.

Creative? Yes, I am always thinking up new places to invest my wealth. I was thinking maybe buying some of the homes that poor people will lose in the upcoming depression.

More industrious...yes, I am that too. I spend a lot of my time working to fill my wine cellar with a collection that is truly diverse...wines from every country in the world.

I'm a better planner than most and of course, I am solidly insightful (learn how to spell).

I used to be disciplined in school, but my parents were able to buy my way into Harvard and Yale, so I didn't have to be anything but white to get along. Easy Peasy!

Luckily for me I'm WHITE.

Wesunidad says: "We need to look into this and I am proposing that we establish a war on wealth by establishing a Council within the New Haven government to monitor and to put limits on how much New Haven residents can acquire."
I don't think you go far enough. There should only be one ice cream flavor. One major at colleges and universities. Restaurants, including the Union League, should serve just one thing. And everyone should have no choice but to obey and accept the tyranny. (sarcasm intended)

And right on cue - there it is.

Police in schools are there for safety of students and staff. They mostly assist with scuffles. However- if the one time a dangerous situation happens in a school; parents will wish there was a cop there instead of a guidance counselor or worse- a social worker.

Many people are not fit to live in society and only the authorities keep them at bay. You want to disarm or remove police?? There will be MORE blood in the streets than there already is. Is that what you want>??

The demands aren't thoughtful or any of the gentle words that have been assigned to them just because it's a child making them.

Part of the reason we make little progress as a society is because of just downright ridiculous statements made in this video.

The rally this weekend ought to be interesting to watch. I wonder if it will mimic last week where they demand to talk to the Mayor and then tell him to shut up and call him a motherfucker. You make yourself easy to dismiss, especially when you don't know the facts.

The children are our future? God help is if this is representative of that.

OhHum...may you are right!

I think it's better to be proactive, however, the demise of capitalism will deal with those white rich people in
it's own way.

We will be standing by worse off than them, but watching it all fall apart as it was intended to do.

Not to worry, the rich know all about how to make capitalism work for them. They knew this day was coming.

I never worry about rich, white people.

Thanks for your thoughts!

@Wesunidad: 1st posting - audacious!!!!
2nd posting - you should be doing stand up comedy.
It's amazing how the white privileged class so readily attests to its own virtue. I laughed out loud. thanks for outing them.

Police officers do not belong in schools. Unless it is to recruit students to think about joining the police to diversify the police force. School counselors trained in adolescent psychology and behavior are a much more valuable resource. When I was a student in NH we had a counselor who made a tremendous difference and prevented situations from escalating. I'll never forget one incident where 2 students from 2 separate groups got in a fight and our school counselor pulled them apart, made them go to her office, and made them stay until they had "talked it out" to her satisfaction. By the end of the night they were both begging for detention instead of being made to talk to each other about why they had gotten into the fight. The next day they told all their friends it was the worst punishment they had ever received. Nobody in that school fought for the rest of the time that we were there. None of the other kids from their groups wanted to retaliate. Another time kids from another school nearby were threatening to come to our school to fight with some of our kids. The counselor and teachers kept us indoors until the threat had passed and made us all talk together in home room groups about why violence is never a solution, it only makes the problem worse. We always knew we could go to our teachers and school counselor about any of our problems and they would help us through as best they could, and were always there to listen. Violence is caused by people who are in pain. Sometimes what you need is for someone to really listen, and stand by you.

As the spouse of a NHPS high school teacher I would be concerned about removing the resource officers. Some fights get out of hand and teachers get injured trying to break them up. It would take even longer to get assistance if the NHPD wasn't on site. Teachers don't have the training to break up fights nor should they. Please don't make decisions based on emotions.

I suspect many who want to remove police officers from schools are not students in NHPS or teachers. Are they necessary at an elementary school, probably not? At a high school? Probably. There are a lot of fights and teachers are not equipped (nor should be equipped) to stop those. And no, a school counselor is not going to be sufficient to stop the majority of these fights no matter what utopian dreams we may have.

Also, I've never heard a convincing reason why slashing police funding will do anything positive for the community. If you want people to flee cities once again, by all means, but the solution is not eliminating police officers it is encouraging them to be better.

Some of the behaviors and illegal behaviors that go on in the schools there should be officers at the school. That should not be cut away. I guess folks forget or not aware of some of the things that go on in the schools OUR schools at that. Police should NOT be there to intimidate but be there when needed and a resource.

Heather C. I am continuously thankful and grateful for your submissions. Thank you for sharing your peacemaking stories...yes, that's what we did in the day BEFORE the U.S. became a militarized country - we now have more guns in private ownership than people, and now we know we can't go back to the way it was with the police.

Change takes a long time, but we can't give up.

We will always have conflict.

But, it's how we SOLVE that conflict that reflects our level of humaness.

Thank you again.

Political & social activism among the youth of this city is admirable. It is exciting to see them think, act & advocate for their interests. It takes courage to make a public stand on issues, & present them to those in authority.
Nevertheless, young people need guidance from mature, responsible adults to give them wise & reasonable advice. Young people can take any position they want on issues, but they should be advised to investigate the repercussions of their demands if adopted.
There is definitely a need for additional counselors.
It would be impossible to reduce police dept. funding by $33 million and maintain a safe & orderly environment in New Haven. Only anarchists want to DEFUND and ABOLISH police forces. There is zero support in this city for anarchy!
It is not feasible or legal to take pension funds & use them to build affordable housing.
Most residents oppose police brutality & abuse of authority, & support police accountability & punishment for violators.
Young people should be advised not to let themselves be used as pawns by radical extremist protesters, many of whom are not New Haven residents, who are not leading an anti-police brutality campaign, but an ANTI-POLICE CAMPAIGN. There is no way that citizens, especially people of color, want less funding for police protection. Unlike these extremists, most of us do not hate or condemn all police as racist or violent. Unlike these extremists, most of us are consistent: we oppose all police violence against law-abiding citizens, & we oppose all violence against law-abiding police officers.
In addressing the rally, keep focused on your demands. Don't be mean, bitter or profane and make personal attacks against city & police officials & officers.
Remember they are fellow citizens and public servants who have worked hard to work with our communities to keep us safe & diffuse dangerous situations. Remember as well that there have been no police killings here in many years, few charges of excess violence.

@Cunningham. You would not know if SRO officers make kids any safer in NHPS. What you might know is that SRO officers have been a deterrent in schools located in high crime communities and have actually stopped assaults against students and staff. SRO officers are now in all the schools that you may have read about where violence occurred.

As to the commenter that suggested that people are rich because of their own superiority, all the big Southern plantation owners in the ante bellum South were rich. So were the robber barons, slumlords, and big time bootleggers during Prohibition. Some modern day millionaires got their money from daddy so they could start life on third base.
This does not mean that all rich people are that way. It does mean that you made a sweeping generalization that glorified the rich and damned the poor. Now we are able to see that the cornerstone of our country are people of moderate and modest means that do the ESSENTIAL work that keeps our economic engines running while the exceptionally rich rig the tax code and get even richer. During the time of Thomas Jefferson, 65 percent of the gross national product was based on slavery. This nation was built on the backs of slaves and poor people.

The George Floyd murder was horrendous. I don't know anyone who says otherwise. All sides of the equation have supported the need to come to the table to discuss change, real change that might benefit society. But, we need to be talking about realistic change. Defunding, or even reducing the budgets of most police departments is not going to help anything.
There are close to 750,000 police throughout the country, mostly in big cities, but even the smallest of towns often has a police officer to protect its citizens. There are bad police officers and the biggest change that is needed is for other officers to feel not only free to speak up against brutality when the see it, but obligated to.
The vast majority of officers are peaceful and helpful. The media has overblown the brutality. The Washington Post, a left leaning news outlet, keeps statistics on police shootings. In 2019 they reported 802 police shootings. 371 involved White victims and 236 involved Black victims. The majority of the victims were armed. Of the unarmed fatal shootings, only 10 cases involved Black victims. Five had attacked the officer. Of the other five, 2 of the officers have been criminally charged.
One death at the hands of the police is too much, but to label 750,000 police officers because of the few criminal officers is unfair to those who joined to serve their community. Certainly it doesn't justify defunding the police and creating anarchy.

I wish someone would have actually surveyed the New Haven Public School STAFF, Parents, and Students in 3 separate surveys to get THEIR input into THEIR communities. BLM-NH is a great movement to empower Black citizens, HOWEVER they should be careful to not speak for smaller communities and agencies on a MICRO level, when it is not their place to speak on. The NHPS community has no trouble speaking for themselves. Sometimes, protesters are just looking for a cause, and have good intentions with "how can we make things better", but do not understand when they are actually infringing on the voices of the people they are protesting "for". Survey the NHPS community FIRST- and find out what they think since THEY are the ones directly affected.

This is a rule that should be taught to all prospective protesters: Arm yourself with facts and truth lest you fight like fools.

Thomas Alfred Paine: This is one of the groups that thought disturbing a two-year old at 1 am was a good way to protest police brutality.

The most uneducated opinions being blasted out in these comments are coming from people who are critical of the call to get police out of schools. I see people making entirely false sweeping statements about what it means to get police out of schools, while unsurprisingly projecting their ignorance onto young people making demands that are 100% in keeping with mountains of studies & evidence.

It's unfortunate to see people fall back on the "common sense" they've internalized from the status quo the prison-industrial complex has propagandized for decades, but the deeper shame is to see those false assumptions weaponized to criticize & condescend to young people, organizers, & activists out here doing the real work. There is a ton of evidence-based research that has been published & is widely available online if you actually care to educate yourselves instead of spout off on this comment thread as if you know better.

Respect & gratitude to all Citywide Youth Coalition organizers & leaders. We'll be out backing you up this afternoon!

Will the New Haven Independent please post the police budget for each of the last 20 years? The last budget posted on the city website is 2012, when the police department was allocated ~37,500,000. What was the police department's budget before DeStefano increased it in the mid-2000s?
http://www.newhavenindependent.org/archives/2006/11/city_seeks_to_b.php

Meanwhile, what services have been cut in order for our city to follow the national lead in making punishment the immediate "solution" to every problem? Our city has cut tens of nurses from our public schools, and meanwhile increased the police presence in them. Many people--and young people--in our city absolutely face major problems, but policing & punishing them only perpetuates & exacerbates those problems. If we want to turn things around we need a transformative approach, instead of continuing to displace communities of color through gentrification, Yale's neo-Ring Road "non-profit" expansion, & the fortress mentality of many in the city's White neighborhoods.

NeoHavener--- your comment..." fortress mentality of many in the city's White neighborhoods " is very offensive and perpetuates the adversarial mentality that no amount of kneeling will ever erase.
But just for argument--- please indicate the neighborhoods in New Haven that are entirely "white" and have this fortress mentality that you claim. Specific streets will be necessary with evidence of fortress and a retraction from you if you cannot provide evidence of your accusations. People have to stop defaming without evidence and getting away with it.