Published July 10. 2021 12:01AM | Updated July 10. 2021 10:28PM By
Whether it is voters in the Democratic mayoral primary in New York City, or a defund police effort here in New London that failed to pick up much steam beyond a relatively small group of advocates, or public concerns that Connecticut’s juvenile crime reforms went too far the message is the public wants fair and professional policing, not less policing.
New York City’s Democratic mayoral nominee struck the right theme calling for both tougher standards to hold police accountable for their actions and beefed-up protection as his city deals with a spike in crime.
The Connecticut Juvenile Training School and the lie that built it
The Connecticut Juvenile Training Center, closed in 2018.
Sitting in the paddy wagon, I was afraid – maybe apprehensive was a better word, since I rightly suspected that white privilege would guarantee me good treatment. Still, I said a prayer of thanksgiving. After years of advocating for people in our carceral system, I was given a chance to develop more empathy.
Together with many other advocates, I’d been arrested for blocking the entrance to the Abraham Ribicoff Federal Building, the Connecticut base of ICE. This was 2018, at the height of the Trump Administration’s criminal separation of families at the southern border. We were protesting that and calling for the elimination of ICE.