“Reinvesting energy and funding from policing into education is a step in the right direction for Bridgeport,” said Takina Pollock Shafer, co-chair of PSPA. “The safest communities don’t have the most police, they have the most resources. Investing in our schools is an investment in our future. I’m excited to see what happens as we continue to reimagine what it means to address public safety in Bridgeport. Public safety is housing, health care, food access, education, and strong communities.”

This vision for public safety is possible as long as we collectively take this win and build a new foundation. Yesterday’s vote marks a new way of being in our city, where our elected representatives on City Council work with the community on the issues that residents have organized to change. At Gen Now, we know meaningful systems change is the result of a clear vision, organized people power, direct engagement, leadership development, and deep relationships. After five years, we are beginning to see the power of social movements and grassroots community organizing here in our own city.

We celebrate this vote as a win – a win on the journey towards the just, equitable, democratic, and livable city we know is possible!

Investing In Public Safety

During this webinar, the PSPA Circle presented their 2019 research into violence as a public health issue and evidence-based policies for addressing and reducing community violence. They also analyzed the large and growing costs of the Bridgeport Police Department, as well as the cost of officer brutality, misconduct and corruption. Finally, the PSPA Circle presented the results of their Public Safety Survey. While the sample size of the survey was not large enough to be conclusive, the majority of respondants said that “more funding for education, a mentorship program for youth, recreational programs for youth and adults, and unarmed intervention teams” were practices that would make the city safer.

To see the slides from this presentation, click here.

A Timeline of American Policing

In September of 2020, Takina Shafer and Cynthia Torres led a webinar that walked participants through a timeline of the history of policing in the United States, opening up a discussion on the origins of American policing and the urgency of Black Lives Matter in Bridgeport. Strong distinctions were drawn between policing and racial justice. During this webinar, we also broke down the historical connection and its relevance to Bridgeport, today.

To watch this webinar on YouTube, click here. 

On July 12th, 2019 and November 19th, 2019 we led the two public forums to hear community voice on public safety, police accountability, restorative justice, and harm-reduction practices.

At the July forum, community members gave testimony on their experience with violence and misconduct with the Bridgeport Police Department. We have deep gratitude to all the Bridgeport residents who came and shared their stories, and the courage it took. There was a lot of emotion coming from the community, as we shared our experiences while confronting people who continue to do serious harm to us and to our neighbors.

Watch the live stream from the July forum here!

At the November forum, we reimagined public safety and shared what safety looks like to us through artwork and dialogue. We talked about how the process of community acountability and the presence of justice are pathways to safety. We defined accountability as a practice/skill that we all need to strengthen at the individual, group, and societal level.

The year to see things clearly: Racism, Abuse of Power & The Corruption of Policing

On June 12th, 2020, Gen Now released a statement in response to the murder of George Floyd.

“The murder of George Floyd is making clear to white people what Black people have known for 400 years. That Black lives have been under constant violent assault. And in the United States, it’s legal. Racism, abuse of power, and the corruption of policing is the root cause of the violence in our country. And right here at home, in Bridgeport, too.”

To read the full statement, click here

Our recommendations were:

• Reallocate money away from the police department and into education, housing, and other community needs
• Reform our Police Union contract to address unchecked power, fire abusive officers and hold others truly accountable
• Reform our Policy Handbook to have zero tolerance for excessive force and other violent behaviors
• Demilitarize our police department  
• Remove police from our schools   
• Establish Anti-Racism training for all of BPD
• Organize real community forums
• Reform the Citizen Complaint process
• Retire Chair Daniel Roach from the Police Commission and return the commission to a true civilian review board

On April 23rd, 2019, Gen Now delivered a statement to City Council during a public hearing regarding the 2019-2020 City Budget.

To read the full statement, click here

Our recommendations were:

• When the overall budget is flat, money for items that are growing can only come from shrinking other items.
• From 2014 to this 2020 proposed budget, the Police Department’s budget has grown by 17% and the City Attorney’s budget has grown by 25%
• Yet the city’s contribution to Education funding has remained flat. This means, every year our schools are forced to cut essential resources, in a district that has the highest needs and opportunity gap in our region. 
• If these trends continue, in another 6 years, the public safety budget will grow another $35 to $40 million. 

On Mach 8th, 2019, Gen Now released a statement in response to an internal affairs report involving 17 Bridgeport police officers.

To read the complete statement, click here

Our recommendations were:

• There is an unrelenting cultural crisis within the Bridgeport Police Department. In our September 2018 statement delivered to the Police Commission we cited no less than 10 incidents of police misconduct, violence, and corruption within the last year.
• Our community deserves a police department committed to 21st Century policing; building trust, transparency and legitimacy, meaningful civilian oversight and policies, community engagement and policing, crime reduction, anti-bias and racial sensitivity training, mental health and trauma support, and officer and civilian safety.
• Culture, leadership, values, principles, and vision all matter. We need visionary leadership, moral consciousness, and deep committed collaborations to heal our police department and our communities from the violence, corruption, racism, and trauma.