Code Switch

How "defund the police" became radioactive

The conversation that would unfold about policing when someone was killed, whether it was someone like Mike Brown, Walter Scott... it would be about the specific dynamics of the interaction. Did the officer fear for his life or not? Did this person were they racist? You know, all these kinds of things. And what bothered me about that was that those conversations blocked out these broader questions about really the main question which is what causes harm in our society actually, right? Why is policing the solution? Why is an armed person with a gun the solution to so many social problems

Book of the Day

'Seasons of Fury' traces the roots of Islamophobia in the United States

The way the judges have justified putting people in prison is by saying, 'We don't know if solitary confinement or decades in jail will make them more radical, and therefore we need to keep these defendants in prison for longer.' And with that logic, no one can actually win their freedom.

TED

How I’m Helping Thousands Rebuild Their Lives After Prison | Susan Burton | TED

I remember one day, standing in front of a judge and asking that judge, "Is there any help for me?" And the judge sentenced me to prison one more time. No one cared. No one was listening.

TED

How I’m Helping Thousands Rebuild Their Lives After Prison | Susan Burton | TED

People in Santa Monica weren't going to prison for substance use, for alcoholism. And I thought, why didn't that judge give me a paper and say, "Miss Burton, go to AA." Was I not worth a piece of paper? Was I not worth direction toward a solution?

TED

Can a Camera on Every Corner Make Us Safer? | Garrett Langley | TED

Historically, poling is a subjective exercise. You drive around suspicious neighborhoods looking for suspicious activity, and ah, there is the root of the bias. what's suspicious to me is different than her and different than him. That doesn't seem very good. And so the chief was explaining to me that now with Flock, it's objective.

The a16z Show

The Plan to Make American Crime Obsolete

the next decade will fundamentally change the skills required to be a police officer in America