It’s a daunting task to write about improving our country’s present-day system of policing. Philip V. McHarris takes on this subject in his book, “Beyond Policing.”
An assistant professor at the Frederick Douglas Institute and Department of Black Studies at the University of Rochester, McHarris dives deeply into the history of policing over the centuries. He reports on the troubling relationship between the police and some of the communities they serve, and looks at innovative community programs providing new solutions in a few cities across the United States.
Community Programs
McHarris reports on how a few select cities across the country are trying out new community systems as alternatives to police interventions. For instance, CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets) in two cities in Oregon is a community-based public safety program that intercedes in cases of mental health, substance abuse and homelessness. “CAHOOTS responders,” McHarris writes, “wear plain, casual attire … and engage in a care-driven, calm manner.”Berkeley, California adopted the BerkDOT program of reducing police-civilian contact at routine traffic stops by using traffic safety workers; the Safe Miami program includes multiple community-based programs to provide free mental health services, a mobile crisis unit for the homeless, and trauma recovery services.
To reach this less violent future, McHarris introduces the term, transformative justice (“TJ”), to describe one initiative used in Chicago. Mariame Kaba began Project NIA to put a stop to placing children and young adults in prison by using intervention techniques to heal, including accountability and working to “transform” rather than punish. In Oakland, California, the phrase “safety pod” has been used to define a relationship within the TJ system. A project of the Bay Area Transformative Justice Collective has been referred to as “a promising strategy,” features groups that work together to support each other in instances of violence or abuse.
According to research, those harmed by the criminal actions of others weren’t satisfied by the court system and not able to make an emotional recovery. Rather, victims wanted to share their feelings, have the criminal recognize what they did, and to know that that person will not engage in such acts again. In transformative justice, a component addresses the needs of those affected by the crime. This is done by not “shaming” or “blaming,” but instead by “fostering empathy, self-awareness, accountability and personal growth,” so that the community can start the healing process.
Question-and-Answer Exchange
One concern readers may have is the background of the book’s question-and-answer exchange. Considering the amount of research cited in the back notes, there’s no mention of when and how this interview was conducted. When people were asked how they imagine a safe place, the responses McHarris notes include family, community, love, freedom, beauty, and the like. He says when this question is asked, people don’t answer “police, prisons, or surveillance.”Who are these “people”? If McHarris had a specific group of participants answer this in real-life, rather than offer a vague reference, his assertions of what constitutes the feeling of safety would have had more credibility. It’s just one critique in an otherwise well-written, thoughtful, and sincere recommendation for a difficult issue.
McHarris’s book is a sobering enterprise. However, like a veteran reporter, his writing style is practical, balanced, and informative. He writes that his initial interest in the subject of policing began while in college. He wanted to further his understanding of the purpose of the police, how it originated, and define the phrase “public safety.” So began an in-depth study while working on his PhD in sociology and African American studies at Yale. This book is the result of that work, which he describes as an “invitation to imagine and create together a world beyond policing.”
“Beyond Policing” doesn’t have all the answers, but it offers a framework for rethinking how public safety is maintained in the United States. McHarris sheds light on how the system of keeping order began in its early days, how it moved through the centuries to where it is now. It’s only by seeing the subject in its true form, with an unbiased mindset, that we can start to create real change to a system that, according to McHarris, needs closer examination.
