How Are We to Judge Policing in Urban Communities?

Bad policing erodes trust and safety in marginalized communities—it’s time to refocus on building relationships and community support

By Paul Forbes

Relationships build respect and trust, while fear breeds hate and mistrust.

I'll never forget my first experience with bad policing. It was the summer of 2004. A few friends and I were walking to basketball practice when an unmarked detective car stopped us and officers got out with their guns drawn. After a quick search, we were let go, never knowing why we were stopped. This is a common practice in poverty-stricken communities where citizens' rights are violated on a daily basis.

I question the methods of policing and ask myself: Is this taught in the training academy, or is this the officer's own will? Are they protecting and serving, or is this bad policing?

Laquan McDonald was shot 16 times while walking away from police with a pocket knife in his hand. My nephew, 16 years old, has shared stories about how fearful his police encounters have been, and I listen and compare his experiences to mine growing up. Nothing has changed since I was his age 20 years ago.

As an individual in custody, I watch the news and wonder how safe my daughter, my nephews, my nieces and other children are, growing up in these communities.

Some may say the method of policing in poverty-stricken communities is justified due to shootings, carjackings, and armed robberies. However, boys and girls shouldn't have to suffer illegal search and seizure because of the actions of another.

Bad policing does not help our communities. It helps the carceral systems with arrest and imprisonment. About 5 million individuals cycle through local jails every year. According to the Prison Policy Initiative, Black people are incarcerated at 600 per 100,000 people versus white people at 184 per 100,000. The cost of policing is $63.2 billion, and the costs paid by incarcerated people and their families (for things like phone calls) is $2.9 billion.

It would take only a portion of the money spent on policing to fund programs and community centers in marginalized communities.

If the officers assigned to these poverty-stricken communities grew up in similar circumstances, they would understand the culture of the community. If officers built relationships with the people in the communities in which they are assigned, they would receive more cooperation from the people. The people would not frown on police encounters and policing.

We understand how crime affects our communities because we grew up in them, live in them, and raise children in them. We want to be able to call the police when we need to, but we don't want negative effects to follow.

We are not against the police. Rather, we are against bad policing. With so many officers in the news for violent incidents, such as police shootings, having an encounter with an officer is a frightening experience. We want our children to be able to play outside, walk to school, walk to practice and to parks without their rights being violated by an illegal search and seizure. We want to be able to trust that when we call the police, they are not going to come with the intent to shoot someone but with the intent to solve a problem.

Bad policing decimates the opportunity to build relationships and community ties. It instills fear and discontent, and it costs taxpayers unnecessary money. It is not protecting the community; it's a disservice to communities.

We only ask that police live up to their slogan of "protect and serve."