NYPD School Safety officers at Richmond Hill High School in Queens (@NYPDSchools)
June 11, 2020 By Allie Griffin
Two school advocacy groups are calling out the mayor for his refusal to pull police officers out of public schools.
Yesterday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said that the more than 5,000 NYPD school safety agents should remain at city schools, when asked at a daily press briefing.
“I personally believe that the better approach is to continue what we have, but improve it, reform it,” de Blasio said in response to a Chalkbeat reporter‘s question on whether he was considering removing the police department from enforcing school safety.
The Alliance for Quality Education and The Dignity in Schools Campaign NY today denounced the mayor’s comments and refusal to remove NYPD officers from public schools.
“Yesterday, Mayor de Blasio doubled down on the criminalization of black and brown youth by refusing to remove the NYPD from schools,” said Maria Bautista, Campaigns Director at the Alliance for Quality Education.
“It is clear de Blasio does not have the moral or political courage to tackle one of the most troubling and concerning racial justice issues of our time: the role of police in our schools and communities.”
Bautista said that there are more NYPD safety agents in city schools than officers in the entire Boston Police Department — more than double, according to reports.
“NYC students are being policed more than whole cities and the consequence is a school-to-prison industry that is disproportionately impacting black and brown students,” she said in a statement.
School districts in other cities— like Minneapolis and Portland — have recently chosen to cut ties with law enforcement as outrage over police brutality has swept the country.
De Blasio, on the other hand, is looking to reform the NYPD’s handling of school safety, instead of removing officers from school hallways.
But critics and even DOE employees disagree with de Blasio’s assessment and have called for the DOE Office of Safety and Youth Development to takeover the training and supervision of school safety officers from the NYPD.
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17 Comments
If anything they need more cops and school safety agents. I live near Queens Vocational, have seen them run wild, fights breaking out caught on my security cameras, sharpen screwdrivers, shanks pulled, they sit on the stoops, smoking weed in the morning before going to class. Economic downfall, COVID19, thugs running wild because of bail reform and cops under appreciated will fold their arms and not do there jobs in retaliation next time they see a crime taking place best not to get involved.This is why there will be an exoudus from NYC in the coming years leading to the downfall of our city due to lack of leadership from the local level (JVB) to Mayor DIBLASIO and an inept chancellor like Richard Carranza leading NYC schools.
Defund the police and invest in communities of color.
that we need police in schools. Cause many of the parents don’t raise their children, much less know how to raise them. Too busy shooting people and selling drugs. Not lying and this is not an opinion. Tis a fact in these areas.
We could use that money to fund other social services such as Firefighters and EMTs, and mental health advisors and programs.
Wow… Is this nonsense pushing people to vote Trump? This is wild.
Each day I hate society more and more.
So let’s defund the police, abolish ice, open borders, no bail for prisoners. What else? What’s their agenda? What are they smoking?
Nothing makes any sense these days. It’s like living in a sci-fi parallel reality.
Still waiting on that “one-time payment” from Mexico for The Wall lmao.
The president is too weak to secure the border, and Democrats are at fault? Immigration is WAY up under Trump. Sad!
I’m pretty sure the same people who yelled that we needed police in school to protect against school shootings are the ones now yelling for police to be removed from school.
Are you kidding! Additional officers are needed in school. There should be additional guidance counselors and social workers as well. Order
must be maintained. An environment that is conducive to learning is needed in order for our students to succeed.
School safety agents are not police officers and are there more to keep the police officers out of the schools as much as possible.
They provide safety and although trained by the police (as are traffic agents) they are mainly accountable to the school principals and the DOE.
Get your facts straight.
OK, let the teachers take care of the thugs. What could go wrong?
They city will just turn them into Traffic Enforcement Agents to target non minority neighborhoods.
Well with schools being closed for months now and no one knowing when and how they will reopen it makes sense to reassign them elsewhere/fire them and perhaps assign/rehire them on a needed basis. Whats the point of paying them as “NYPD school safety agents” if school are closed. I think its more about funding. IMO, many of them are placed in a school setting because they cant work the streets. Its similar to being a cop and having a desk job.
It would be nice if someone asked the parents of students what they want.
Police free school? Who will protect the schools? This whole against-police movement is getting our of hand.
There is no logic or reason.
Enough with the anti police hysteria already!
Maybe you prefer street gangs to keep order in the schools.
These progressives are clearly insane.