Improving youth-police relations
Sit in a room with Rochester youth and hear them talk about their relations with the police. Stories of feeling dehumanized, disrespected, stereotyped, profiled, judged and misunderstood fill the air.
Then sit in a room with Rochester police officers and hear about their relations with youth. They tell similar stories.
Then bring youth and police together to talk honestly about the issues.
This is what Teen Empowerment, the Rochester Police Department and the Center for Public Safety Initiatives at Rochester Institute of Technology have been doing to address the deep-seated distrust between youth and police.
Valuable information was gathered in 2,200 youth-police surveys as well as focus groups attended by 175 youth and 50 police officers.
It is clear that things need to change dramatically if the two groups are to coexist. Both groups rate relations with each other very low.
Improving youth and police relations needs a strategy with careful attention to the past, honest dialogue about the present and commitment to a new way of being.
Both sides need to claim their part of the problem. Establishing a process jointly owned by police, youth and community organizations is vital.
Recently more than 125 youths, police and adult leaders convened at a symposium titled “Real Talk, Real Walk, Real Change: Transitioning Youth and Police to a New Beginning” to set priorities.
A few of the solutions put forward by youth and police included:
The process has brought our community together in a new way that will allow us to address the root causes of tensions between youth and police.
The results bring great hope for Rochester’s future and represent a model for similar efforts.
Doug Ackley is director of Rochester programs for Teen Empowerment and Gary Moxley is a Rochester police sergeant.
