Police in Schools Are Not the Answer to School Shootings - Advancement Project - Advancement Project

Police in Schools Are Not the Answer to School Shootings

We are reissuing Police in Schools are Not the Answer to the Newtown Shootings, an issue brief that our organizations released in the wake of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. At the time, many of the responses to the shooting focused on placing more police officers and more guns in schools. Research and the experiences of countless students, teachers, and parents have taught us that while these proposals may create the appearance of safety, the actual effects wreak havoc on school culture and fuel the school-to-prison pipeline. After Newtown, we urged lawmakers at the local, state, and national level to resist policies that would turn even more schools into hostile environments where students, especially Black and Brown students, are more likely to be arrested, harassed, and assaulted by police. Five years later, in the wake of the tragic Parkland shooting, we have yet again seen calls to militarize and weaponize our schools, despite no evidence that these policies will protect our students. Our position remains the same: proposals that increase the presence of police, guns, and other law enforcement approaches to school safety should not be the response to school shootings. This foreword includes new evidence and experiences that demonstrate why police do not belong in schools.

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Racial Justice Organization Advancement Project Responds to President Biden’s State of the Union Address

WASHINGTON, DC – In reaction to the State of the Union, Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director of Advancement Project, a national racial justice organization, issued this statement: “Tonight’s State of the Union, held just weeks after the killing of Tyre Nichols, did little to address the core problems inherent in policing.  “While President Biden acknowledged the pain and grief of families like the parents of Tyre Nichols, his administration’s efforts to put more money and resources into policing will only result in more murders of Black people by the hands of police.

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Advancement Project Responds to Reports Of Memphis Police Officers Charged Over Tyre Nichols Killing

Leading Racial Justice Organization Calls for World Where Black People Are Free WASHINGTON, DC —  In response to reports that five former Memphis police officers are charged with the murder and kidnapping of Tyre Nichols, Judith Browne Dianis, executive director of Advancement Project released this statement: “Today, three weeks after Tyre Nichols’ brutal killing, it was announced that five former Memphis police officers were indicted on charges including murder and kidnapping. While it is rare to see cops face any accountability for their actions, this is hardly a victory. Nothing can bring…

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We Cannot Keep Doing Business As Usual: Response to Biden’s “Safer America Plan”

Civil Rights Organization on President Biden’s “Safer America Plan” Says Increase of Police Officers in Communities Will Not Only Fail to Improve Public Safety, But Also Lead to More Harm to Communities of Color Washington, DC – In response to the “Safer America Plan” announced by President Joe Biden on Tuesday in Philadelphia, Liyah Brown, program director for the Justice Project at Advancement Project National Office, issued this statement:  “President Biden’s call for an increase of police officers in our communities will not only fail to improve…

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Leading Civil Rights Group on Reports Federal Officials Have Charged Four Current and Former Police Officers in the Killing of Breonna Taylor

Statement from Judith Browne Dianis, executive director of Advancement Project – National Office, a leading civil rights organization, on reports that federal officials have charged four current and former police officers involved in the fatal raid that killed Breonna Taylor, of several crimes, including lying to obtain a warrant that was used to search her home:  “Today, by moving forward with criminal charges against the four police officers involved in the killing of Breonna Taylor as she slept in her bed, federal officials are recognizing what we have all known for years: Breonna Taylor should be alive…

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Invest in People, Not Police

July 22, 2022 Contact: Yasmeen Ramahi, [email protected] “Invest in People, Not Police” Advancement Project National Office Response to Joe Biden’s “Safer America Plan” Washington, DC – In response to the “Safer America Plan” introduced by President Joe Biden on Thursday, Liyah Brown, program director for the Justice Project at Advancement Project National Office, issued this statement:  “President Biden’s call for an increase of 100,000 police officers in our communities will not only fail to improve public safety, but will…

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Civil Rights Org Advancement Project National Office Responds to Biden’s Policing Order

NATIONAL – Today, on the two-year anniversary of George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police and the subsequent uprisings across the country calling for an overhaul of police and policing, President Biden signed an Executive Order that aims to cut down on police abuse and misconduct. In response, Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director of the national civil rights group Advancement Project National Office, wrote this statement: “On the anniversary of the day when George Floyd was killed by state-sanctioned police violence, we are glad to see President Biden creating an initiative that aims to curtail police abuse…

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National #PoliceFreeSchools Advocates Welcome “Counseling Not Criminalization” Legislation

Bicameral bill would shift federal resources away from school police and incentivize investment in evidence-based supports for students 

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Advancement Project Calls on America to Move Beyond Police and Prisons: “We Can’t Reform This System”

A year after George Floyd’s murder, Advancement Project National Office reflects on how to build a #FreeandSafe society for all people of color.

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The Best Mother’s Day Gift is Freedom

By Ashley Carter, Justice Project Program Deputy Director and Senior Staff Attorney Photo credit: Cyndi Elledge // Photos are a part of the #FreeBlackWomxn series. Visit www.freeblackwomxn.org. Thousands of women with children across the United States will spend this Mother’s Day behind bars. The crisis of mass incarceration has fueled a family separation endemic: more than 150,000 children have a parent who is in jail simply because they are too poor to afford their court-imposed cash bail. This year we are working to support the 2021 Black Mama’s Day Bailout organized and led by our community partners…

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Black Mama Bailout: #FreeBlackWomxn

Michigan Liberation and the Advancement Project National Office have launched the #FreeBlackWomxn campaign, a photo and storytelling project that elevates the voices of Black Michigan mothers who have experienced incarceration. We are honored that Kimberly, Machelle, Geneva, Darnita, Dominica, Irene, and Tamika shared their stories with us. Click each woman’s photo below to read their experience with incarceration. In Spring 2019, Michigan…

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