A common belief in criminal-justice reform is that people who live in crime-ridden communities are so bad off that they cannot help themselves. This image can be found on the left and the right of American politics, and it leads to policies that ignore the potential for residents to play a key role in addressing problems in such communities.
On the left, this premise has led to calls to “transform our approach to public safety” by defunding the police and investing “in the basic needs of our communities and provid[ing] universal health care, public housing, universal childcare, strong unions, and livable wages.” On the right, pundits call for massive increases in policing, which they see as the only public investment that can reduce crime. What these perspectives have in common is a paternalistic approach to criminal-justice reform that treats residents of these areas with condescension.
Continue reading the entire piece here at The Baltimore Sun (paywall)
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Hannah Meyers is director of the policing and public safety initiative at the Manhattan Institute. David Weisburd is a professor at George Mason University and executive director of the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy. Based on a recent report.
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