NAN Press Release in Response to the Policing Review Commission Report
Northampton Abolition Now Commends the Northampton Policing Review Commission’s Report as a Victory for Reinvesting in Community
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Northampton, Mass., March 30, 2021 – Northampton Abolition Now (NAN) commends the Northampton Policing Review Commission (NPRC) for the recommendations in its final report titled “Reimagining Safety,” which aims to reduce the size, scope, and power of policing and advocates for alternatives to policing in Northampton.
NAN is a group of Western Mass based artists, community leaders, educators, and organizers who have been advocating for a radical reimagining of public safety in Northampton. NAN released key demands that outline ways to make the community safe for everyone at the expense of no one. “NAN’s demands resonated strongly with the public and the commissioners,” said Robert Eastman, a volunteer organizer with NAN. “This makes us hopeful for the future of Northampton.”
“Reimagining Safety” moves beyond the typical calls for police “reform” and instead calls upon City Councillors and the Mayor to invest in services that actually make Northampton safer. NAN is most excited about the following aspects of the report:
- The two-year timeline and plan for a new Department of Community Care that will be co-designed, led, and staffed by those who have experienced criminalization and marginalization and by those who have historically been most harmed by policing
- Call for the immediate removal of police from situations that others are better suited to respond to: wellness checks, suspicious persons calls, and non-violent public assembly
- Call for the removal of police from the following situations as the city invests in community responses: animal control, flagging, general patrolling, medical emergencies, minor traffic accidents, misdemeanors, public disturbances, restorative justice programs, serving summons and warrants, status offenses, and traffic details
- Call for the Mayor and City Council to amend the budget writing and approval procedure to allow those who have been harmed by policing to be a part of the process
- Call for a Housing First initiative to provide housing without restrictions based on substance abuse or prior criminal records
- Proposal to cap overtime in the Northampton Police Department (the NPD)
- Overall emphasis on peer-led, non-coercive responses to people in crisis
The recommendations above pave the way for new community safety measures that will make it easy to reduce the NPD budget by at least 50% in the near future. NAN commends the NPRC’s report, which aligns with their three core demands:
- Immediately reallocate the full $880,000 that was cut from the NPD budget in June 2020 to meet the urgent needs of community members in FY2021
- Establish a Department of Community Care in Northampton
- Defund the NPD budget by 50% in FY2022
NAN urges Mayor Narkewicz and the City Council to use funds that have already been divested from the NPD to establish a Department of Community Care and continue to defund the NPD in the coming fiscal year.
“The NPRC’s support for the Department of Community Care (DCC) is a vital step. The DCC will make it possible for folks who have been most harmed by policing to lead community safety programs that positively affect the entire Northampton area,” said Jesse Hassinger, co-owner of Belly of the Beast. “The DCC also has incredible potential to help heal people during times of trauma, and to overall foster a culture of antiracism, inclusion, and representation that we have not seen in Northampton before.”
While the report’s core recommendations align with the calls from the uprising last summer and the Movement for Black Lives Policy Platform, the recommendations to create a strategic plan for the NPD and address the complaint process do not. NAN strongly opposes funding a new strategic plan and complaint process for the NPD. Studies have shown time and time again that reforms and complaint processes are unable to alter what is a fundamentally violent system. “The NPD will not advocate for a reduction of its own power; instead we believe that the NPD will leverage the strategic plan for their own benefit, not for the good of our community,” said Josey Rosales, a Northampton Policing Review Commissioner.
“Northampton takes pride in being a bastion for progressive, forward-thinking politics devoted to the equality of all at the expense of no one. Divesting from police and reinvesting in new community initiatives that provide dignity and safety for all is the next step,” said Eastman.
The NPRC’s report will be formally presented to the City Council on Tuesday, March 30, 2021 at 6:00 PM. NAN urges Northampton residents to contact their ward representatives to voice their support for the creation of a Department of Community Care and to urge Mayor Narkewicz to immediately allocate the unused funds for its creation. NAN invites residents and neighbors to attend the City Council meeting on Thursday, April 1, 2021 at 7:00 PM to voice support for reinvestment in community safety during public comment.
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Northampton Abolition Now (NAN) is a group of Western Mass based artists, community leaders, educators, organizers, and writers who have been collectively advocating for radical reimagining of public safety in Northampton. NAN organizes to move money from the police department into alternative programs that make our community safer. Policing is rooted in anti-Black racism and the oppression of poor and working class people, and we want to build a world without police and prisons. NAN supports community-led initiatives that are accountable to those who are most harmed by policing. We welcome all who imagine a Northampton community grounded in justice and accountability that meets the needs of all people.
To learn more, visit https://northamptonabolitionnow.com/