In 2003, my childhood friend was a victim of gun violence, murdered in front of his home in South Jamaica. It was an event that changed my life and led to my involvement in government.
It is also why I was proud to organize — as chief of staff to then-City Councilman James Sanders, who I succeeded — the first gun buyback in Queens, which took nearly 1,000 guns off our streets.
I strongly support efforts to stem the gun violence still occurring in our communities, and I also support the Community Safety Act. We must enact a real ban on racial profiling.
Preventing gun violence and rooting out misguided NYPD policies are not contradictory goals. In fact, reforming stop-and-frisk is an essential part of improving safety in New York City. It is imperative that we regain communities’ faith with policing that treats people fairly regardless of their race, sexual orientation or address.
Contrary to misleading statements by Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration and other opponents of reform, the bill banning racial profiling will in no way end stop-and-frisk or prevent officers from using sound and effective law enforcement practices.
When there is no reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, the law will simply prohibit officers from stopping and frisking someone explicitly due to the color of their skin or sexual orientation.
The standard used in the Community Safety Act’s discriminatory profiling ban is, in fact, identical to the one in the anti-racial profiling law that Bloomberg signed into law in 2004. By claiming this law would handcuff police, opponents of the bill are either misinformed or intentionally misleading the public.
Having lost someone so close to me during a violent crime, I completely understand the need for safety in our communities. I deeply respect the police who work tirelessly to prevent violence and pursue perpetrators.
But continually making excuses for an indefensibly out-of-control stop-and-frisk policy is offensive. Neither the tension these policies create between the NYPD and the communities they are supposed to serve nor the divisive rhetoric that defends these policies are making our great city any safer.
Gun violence has remained nearly unchanged throughout the Bloomberg administration. That is something residents in many communities of color across the city can tell you — just about the same number of people in our communities are being shot.
Rather than reflexively defending an out-of-control policy which sows distrust of the police, our mayor should be seeking a constructive path forward that will truly help make our city safer.
The Council has taken strong steps to support anti-violence efforts through its Taskforce to Combat Gun Violence, which provides funding for violence interrupters and other proven programs.
However when law-abiding New Yorkers start to look at the police as the enemy, our collective work to stem gun violence is shackled by mistrust.
We need to commit to public safety policies that engage the majority of people who simply want to live productively and feel that they can put their trust in the police, who are supposed to be protecting them.
This change starts with common sense reforms, which would protect the rights and safety of all New Yorkers.
It is not about attacking or demonizing police officers. It is quite the opposite: It is about standing up to the misguided politicians who defend a quota-driven system that damages the relationship between our officers and the communities they protect.
Ending such injustices will allow officers and citizens to mend the bridges in our neighborhoods. Without a basic understanding between police and community, solving and preventing crime becomes a much more difficult task.
Stopping New Yorkers who are doing nothing wrong is counterproductive to everyone’s safety and also simply a waste of resources.
We should applaud our members of the Council, like Councilman Mark Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens), who may not have personally experienced these stop-and-frisk abuses, but understand that they are wrong and detrimental to public safety.
Rather than cynically attacking Council members who represent the districts which are affected by stop-and-frisk, opponents of the bill should unite with everyday New Yorkers and support the enactment of a ban against discriminatory profiling.
We need to take real strides toward reducing gun violence and ensuring all New Yorkers are safe in our city. We also need to protect the basic liberties of the law-abiding, tax-paying citizens who we were democratically elected to represent.
Donovan Richards
City Councilman
(D-Laurelton)
