Keeping us safe

The Movement 4 Black Lives and GenForward hosted a conversation on Black Perspectives on Community Safety to highlight a new report released this week measuring Black people’s experiences with policing and incarceration, and their feelings about alternatives to these systems. Dr. Cathy Cohen of the University of Chicago and GenForward was the lead scholar. She explained that the national survey was designed to give a picture of the complexity and nuanced experiences of Black people. By centering the voices of people’s perceptions on safety this data can help us think in imaginative ways about creating movements for just, safe, and healthy communities.

The report begins acknowledging the complicated reality of most Black people in relationship to police. A large majority of the responders fear the police in crisis and emergency situations. A large majority reported that they or someone they knew had negative interactions with police. At the same time a majority of Black people say they would call the police because there are no other sources of help. This dilemma, and the recognition of broader systemic issues, results in widespread support for comprehensive reforms, new initiatives that create public safety, and transforming policing when specific alternatives are offered.

Here is some of the data to consider:

55% of Black people support divesting from police departments and putting their entire budget towards areas that strengthen community life such as education, health care, and housing.

67% of Black people support redirecting some of the police budget toward such areas.

86% of Black people support creating a first responders’ organization with people skilled in de-escalating violence and providing mental-health support and other social services. These responders would be independent of police. 

78% of Black people support a processes whereby city officials promote public safety by investing in solutions that do not rely on incarceration. 

88% of respondents support hiring mental-health professionals as first responders to de-escalate mental-health crises. 

82% of respondents support increased federal funding for states to develop crisis- response systems that do not rely on incarceration. 

80% support the closing of jails, prisons, or detention facilities that are notorious for human-rights violations. 

The report concludes, “The data support the urgent need for a radical shift away from our existing carceral systems—policing, jails, and prisons—with a strong call for investments in police alternatives that emphasize preventive measures and mental-health resources. This is not just This is not just about reducing harm but proactively building safer and healthier communities.”

Rather than advocating a single national model, the report emphasizes using this data to inform deeply local responses to community issues. Cat Brooks spoke of the successes in Oakland, California and Terun Moore of his work in Jackson, Mississippi. Overall, the conversation emphasized the importance of shared principles and values to inform and strengthen local work.

Those of us working for a future free from jails, police, and punitive practices, who believe in our capacity to create a liberatory future, have much to learn from this good work. 

It raises important questions for us in Detroit. Over the last few years we have seen people killed and families disrupted by police responding to mental health crisis. In 2023 Detroit police responded to 12,000 mental health calls, roughly 230 calls a day.

After the horrific killings of Porter Brooks and Kiazia Miller, the DPD made superficial reforms in the Crisis Intervention Team. New uniforms, and money for technological toys were their primary concerns.

As we approach our city budget and priorities, it is time to follow the ideas of people who think about these issues daily and who experience their dangers. We need to shift money from the police and support an independent organization of people who are trained in conflict resolution, de-escalation, and empathetic support to create safe community life for all of us.