http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/30/opinion/police-stop-and-frisks.html?_r=1&emc=eta1

LETTER

Police Stop-and-Frisks

Published: December 29, 2011

To the Editor: 

In “Why Is the N.Y.P.D. After Me?” (Sunday Review, Dec. 18), Nicholas K. Peart illustrates how the lives of young black men are violated regularly by the police, usually without any merit.

Our analysis of 2009 stop-and-frisk data for the New York police shows that 94 percent of stops in 2009 did not lead to an arrest. The analysis also showed that there were 132,000 stops of black men 16 to 24. This is particularly striking since according to Census Bureau data that we examined, only 120,000 black men of that age lived in New York City in 2009. So on average, every young black man can be expected to be stopped and frisked by the police each year.

We cannot accept that so many young people experience their lives this way, particularly at such a formative stage. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s recent Young Men’s Initiative made little attempt to address stop-and-frisk policy. We must stop treating young black men like criminals and start thinking of them as potential assets to our recovering and growing economy and society. Until we do, our efforts to improve their education and employment prospects will be hollow.

LAZAR TRESCHAN
Director of Youth Policy
Community Service Society
of New York
New York, Dec. 19, 2011

Statement in Solidarity with (Un)Occupy Together Protestors in Oakland, NYC and Around the World

Peoples’ Justice for Community Control and Police Accountability (Peoples’ Justice or PJ) stands in solidarity with (Un)Occupy¹ protests in New York City, Oakland, throughout the country and around the world, and with all others who struggle against capitalism, the severe economic inequality it causes, and the unjust systems of oppression (e.g. white-supremacy/racism, patriarchy/sexism, heterosexism/homo- and trans-phobia, xenophobia etc.) that co-arise with it. Furthermore, we stand for the rights of protestors to make their voices heard without fear of repression by police departments that use our tax dollars to protect and defend the wealthy elite (the 1%). These departments do not serve our communities and never have.

In recent weeks, in cities across the US, the police have been deployed to silence and violently suppress protestors and evict encampments.  The tear gas, “non-lethal rifles”, and concussion grenades used against Oakland protestors last week were perhaps the worst attack so far, but sadly, not the first and probably not the last.  Here in New York City, over the past forty-plus days, we have repeatedly witnessed the New York Police Department (NYPD) attacking people exercising their right to assemble. They have used pepper spray, batons, fists and unjust arrests against protestors since the beginning of Occupy Wall Street, most recently severly beating several protestors who were marching in solidarity with Oakland.  Through these actions the police in Oakland and New York have only demonstrated that they do not serve the people.

Peoples’ Justice Know Your Rights Training Series

Wed. 11/9, 6:30-9pm: KNOW YOUR RIGHTS:  Practical information on your rights when dealing with the NYPD and how to exercise them safely.  This training is open to anyone.

Wed. 11/16, 6:30-9pm:  KNOW YOUR RIGHTS TRAINING 4 TRAINERS: How to facilitate PJ Know Your Rights Trainings for your community.  This training is open to those who have attended the 11/9 training or any other PJ Know Your Rights Training.  

Location for both trainings: 105 East 22nd St. rm 4A.  (Take the 6 or N/R to 23rd St. stop in Manhattan.)

Who should attend: Folks who are tired of watching police violence in their neighborhoods;  Folks who wanna learn their rights when dealing wtih the cops (esp. poc, youth, immigrants, trans and queer folks.);  Folks interested in facilitating PJ Know Your Rights Trainings and/or conducting Cop Watch team in their communities.

**To rsvp for either email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and specify which training(s) you wish to attend.**

http://www.nyclu.org/

CONTACT:  Jennifer Carnig, 212.607.3363 / This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  

NYCLU: New NYPD ‘Enforcement Goals’ Seem Like Quotas 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

October 27, 2011 – The New York Civil Liberties Union today expressed concern about a new operations order issued by NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly that appears to establish a formal quota system for arrests, summonses and street stops. 

The order, issued on Oct. 17 and made public today by The Village Voice, requires setting “performance goals” for police officers that will measure “enforcement activity,” including making arrests, issuing summonses and conducting stop and frisk encounters. 

“This sounds like management-speak for a quota system,” said NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman. “Enforcement quotas threaten basic rights and undermine trust between police and residents, which is why the State Legislature passed legislation outlawing them last year. Commissioner Kelly must provide details on these new performance goals and explain how they are different than quotas.”