Policing Pain Policing Pain
It’s been estimated that half of the people shot and killed by police officers in the United States have some type of mental-health problem. James Boyd was killed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, after a five-hour negotiation with police, who were trying to get the homeless man to leave his illegal campsite. Boyd had only two small camping knives, but he was shot in the back after the officers set off a stun grenade. When they aren’t killing people with mental-health issues, the police are arresting them, a harrowing and harmful experience in its own right. “Jails are the number one mental-health facilities across the country,” San Antonio Police Officer Joe Smarro explains in a new video series about overcriminalization, which launches at TheNation.com on October 9. Produced by Brave New Films in partnership with the ACLU, the series explores alternatives to the criminalization of social problems like mental illness, homelessness and addiction. Please support our journalism. Get a digital subscription for just $9.50! There’s a long history in America of imprisoning vulnerable populations. The criminalizing of homelessness harks back to the days after Reconstruction, when outdated vagrancy laws were suddenly applied to the newly freed black population. The “black codes” targeted formerly enslaved people, who were arrested for violations such as lacking proof of employment. They were then sent to prisons that had sprung up on former plantations, effectively re-enslaving them. This legacy carries on through stop-and-frisk policies and discriminatory immigration enforcement measures. Such policies criminalize everyday behavior, are enforced in a racist fashion, and designate police officers as the first and only solution to society’s problems. That’s why this series is not just about describing the problem, but about how you can take action. These videos focus on innovative and cost-effective solutions that actually improve people’s lives, making us less dependent on prisons and policing to address problems that are far too complex to be beaten into submission. Read Next: Steven Hsieh on the mentally ill veteran who “baked to death” at Rikers
Oct 8, 2014 / Editorial / Mychal Denzel Smith
Why Voting and Movement Building Go Hand-in-Hand Why Voting and Movement Building Go Hand-in-Hand
Voting and movements help create representative democracy.
Oct 3, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
Michael Dunn Was Found Guilty—but That’s Not Enough to Ensure Justice in an Unjust World Michael Dunn Was Found Guilty—but That’s Not Enough to Ensure Justice in an Unjust World
A guilty verdict does not undo the racist world we live in.
Oct 2, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
Why White People’s Awareness of Racism Isn’t Enough Why White People’s Awareness of Racism Isn’t Enough
A majority of Americans believe the criminal justice system is racially biased, but it takes more than an acknowledgement to dismantle the system.
Sep 24, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
Sparing the Rod Won’t Spoil the Racism Sparing the Rod Won’t Spoil the Racism
Corporal punishment is an extension of respectability politics, the idea that when people of color behave “correctly,” racism can be overcome.
Sep 19, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
What to Do While You Wait for Darren Wilson to Be Acquitted What to Do While You Wait for Darren Wilson to Be Acquitted
Forty days after Officer Darren Wilson shot and killed Michael Brown, America’s “justice system” continues to fail.
Sep 18, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
What More Will It Take to Arrest Darren Wilson? What More Will It Take to Arrest Darren Wilson?
New witnesses to the Michael Brown killing say he had his hands up when he was shot by police.
Sep 11, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
More Police Will Never Be a Solution to Black America’s Woes More Police Will Never Be a Solution to Black America’s Woes
Increased police presence won‘t make “bad kids” any better.
Sep 5, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
Black Millennials Are Emerging as the ‘Movement Generation’ Black Millennials Are Emerging as the ‘Movement Generation’
If you’re asking the question “Where is the movement?” you simply haven’t been paying attention.
Aug 28, 2014 / Blog / Mychal Denzel Smith
How Trayvon Martin’s Death Launched a New Generation of Black Activism How Trayvon Martin’s Death Launched a New Generation of Black Activism
A host of new groups are reviving the grassroots fight for racial equality.
Aug 27, 2014 / From the Archive / Mychal Denzel Smith