Letter to Denver School Board: Removing Police From Schools Keeps Black and Brown Children Safe

Advancement Project National Office and the Alliance for Educational Justice (AEJ) to fully and enthusiastically support Board Members Jennifer Bacon and Tay Anderson’s call to terminate the contract between the Denver Police Department (DPD) and Denver Public Schools (DPS) and remove police from schools. If we have learned anything from this historic moment spurred by the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, it is that police cannot be trusted to keep us safe. Years of DPS data reflecting a relentless school to prison pipeline indicate disparate criminalization of students of color by the police. DPS has a duty to protect students from a police department whose culture allows for the brutal and violent use of force against peaceful protestors. Officers that roam school hallways are no different from the officers on the streets of Denver and thus, a new vision for safety must emerge from this crisis. The Minneapolis Public School Board’s historic, unanimous vote this week to remove police from schools demonstrates that a police free schools future is both possible and necessary to protect the safety and humanity of Black and Brown children.