The New York Police Department (NYPD) inspector general in a report found that NYPD enforcement of low-level infractions and offenses have no “empirical evidence demonstrating a clear and direct link” to reduced crime. Yet it’s enforced disparately across the city.
This report provides more objective confirmation that ‘broken windows’ policing is not based on evidence related to public safety, but relies on an ideology that regressively labels some New Yorkers as criminal in a discriminatory way.
The hard evidence that does exist – as shown by this report – is the disparity in where this type of policing is enforced and who is its target – communities of color and low-income communities, among others.
It makes Mayor Bill de Blasio and Commissioner Bill Bratton’s continued championing of policing policy based on this conservative, race and bias-based ideology that harms Black, Latino, homeless, low-income, immigrant, and LGBTQ New Yorkers all the more disgraceful and perplexing.
While it’s important that the IG examined this topic, the report is disappointing in its lack of depth examining how ‘broken windows’ policing particularly intersects with factors such as race, poverty, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, homelessness, and immigration.
New Yorkers have devastating experiences with this discriminatory and selective enforcement of minor offenses, and the report’s failure to capture those experiences and perspectives is a badly squandered opportunity.
The report’s tortuous and out-of-context attempt to extricate ‘broken windows’ policing also appears to be overly political.
Monifa Bandele is spokesperson
Communities United for Police Reform.
