Stop and Frisk

Bro/Sis has been centrally involved in organizing to reform the New York City Police Department’s (NYPD) unconstitutional “Stop and Frisk” policy.

 

Under Michael Bloomberg’s administration, nearly ten million stops occurred in New York City – 84% of whom were Black or Latinx. Of those stopped, only 5% were arrested or issued a ticket, and less than .1% had a gun – yet the NYPD was supposed to have “reasonable” suspicion before stopping and frisking an individual.

The New York State Attorney General issued a report that found that only 1% have stops have resulted in convictions of possession of a gun and only 1.5% in any conviction at all. This is a policy that only is enforced in some neighborhood, and only on some citizens. It is a part of the discredited “Broken Windows” policing approach.

In response to wide spread organizing efforts, Mayor de Blasio has agreed to drop the appeal in Floyd and reform the widespread policy of “Stop and Frisk;” the New York City Council has voted to put into place oversight of the NYPD and strengthen remedies if the NYPD racially profiles; a Federal Judge has found that the NYPD’s practice has violated the United States Constitution and mandated oversight of the NYPD..

Bro/Sis contributed to an Amicus Brief in Floyd v. City of New York, submitted a declaration in the case, and our members were named witnesses. We have testified in front of the New York City Council, provided witness testimony in Floyd, advocated within the New York City Council and with its members, advocated for reform with Mayor Bill de Blasio, sought policy reform, engaged in political education with our membership, and heard testimony from our community. Our youth have spoken out widely on the issue in assorted press mediums and have created documentaries on their experience.

Our members have been leading voices in the organizing effort to ensure fair policing. Nicholas Peart, our alumni member, wrote the definitive first person statement on the issue, an Op Ed in the New York Times, “Why is the NYPD After Me?” He, other members, staff, and our Executive Director Khary Lazarre-White, have been interviewed on MSNBC, CNN, CBS National News, Fox Latino, WABC, WPIX, NY1, WBAI, Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now, in The New York Times, EPOCH Times, MSNBC’s thegrio.com, and other US based outlets, as well as on British, Japanese and Brazilian television. Representatives from the organization have appeared over 50 times on television to discuss the issue.

The Yale Law School featured our members in the documentary, STIGMA, which focused on the personal effect of stop and frisk. Bro/Sis partnered with The Game Changers Project (GCP) to create mini-documentaries that have aired on the subject on MSNBC’s thegrio.com, Ebony.com and at The Ford Foundation. Khary Lazarre-White has written and spoken extensively on the issue and has been a leading commentator on television regarding police reform, racial profiling, and for approaches about gun and violence reduction that do not violate the United States Constitution.

We have members who have been stopped and frisked between 5 and 30 times. All of the male staff of our organization have been stopped and frisked. The vast majority of our male membership have experienced being stopped and frisked. We have members who have experienced this interaction with the police when walking down the street, standing in front of their buildings, walking down the hallways in public housing, working out in the park, riding the trains, going to the store, and often when walking to high school. We believe our central role in the effort is to put front and center the voices of young people who have had the experience of being “stopped and frisked”.

Watch Executive Director & Co-Founder Khary Lazarre-White appeared on CBS News to discuss Michael Bloomberg’s recent apology for his stop and frisk policy. Click Here.