Identity and Diversity in Public Service: The History and Context of Police Reform in NYC
On October 20, NYU Wagner Students for Criminal Justice Reform (SCJR), in partnership with the Wagner Policy Alliance and the Wagner Staff Diversity Committee, hosted Elizabeth Glazer, Director from the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (and former Wagner Distinguished Visiting Urbanist), for an hour-long discussion about the past, present, and future of police reform. This program was in conjunction with Wagner’s Identity and Diversity in Public Service programming series. Glazer spoke with members of the SCJR board about the way forward for New York City after a monumental summer, during which tens of thousands of New Yorkers took to the streets to demand police reform.
Glazer focused her comments not on policing, but rather on the more holistic concept of public safety. While police are the most prominent face of public safety, she pointed out, officers are by no means the most effective method of keeping our streets safe. Moving away from coercive tactics of maintaining public safety to more participatory methods, including civic engagement and investment, may be a better long-term solution to ensuring the safety of communities in New York City and rooting out the racially disparate effects of policing on New Yorkers. Ultimately, Glazer observed that tinkering with police does little good; instead, reimagining their role in promoting and safeguarding public safety is key.
In particular, Glazer noted that although the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice has lightened the touch of police on communities -- for example, New York City’s jail population has shrunk dramatically throughout the de Blasio Administration, as has the use of stop-and-frisk -- racial disparities persist. The number of shootings in New York City has gone down, but the neighborhoods that experience the highest number of homicides has remained steady over the last several decades. Clearly, past police reform has not led to more racially equitable criminal justice outcomes; instead, it has simply perpetuated racial disparities on a smaller scale.
Looking to the future, Glazer focused on the need to invest in civilian-centered ways of increasing public safety and well-being. She pointed to Cure Violence and the Mayor’s Action Plan for Community Safety as two examples of programs that empower communities to make decisions and voice needs that maintain their own safety. Glazer also spoke about the need to invest in spaces that invite social interactions and maintain strong senses of community. Finally, Glazer pointed to New York City’s current fiscal issues as a potential opportunity for criminal justice reform, as municipal leaders may vet public safety programs more rigorously based on the evidence of their impact rather than relying on expensive public safety solutions that may do little good.