A mayoral candidate came to a neighborhood workshop on dealing with police Saturday — and ended up in a discussion about the efficacy of “stop and frisk” tactics.
The exchange took place at Barnard School during the first Family Forum sponsored by the West River Neighborhood Services Corporation.
Joining neighbors at the event was East Rock Alderman Justin Elicker, a Democrat who is running for mayor. He visited a workshop called “What Should You Do When Stopped By The Police?” led by New Haven police Officer Shafiq Abdussabur, president of the National Association of Black Law Enforcement Officers.
Elicker mentioned the controversy in New York City over police “stop and frisk” tactics, which critics say have largely targeted African-Americans in the Big Apple.
“We are doing stop-and-frisk in New Haven” to a certain extent already, said Elicker. He said he has concerns about the policy, although he said he wasn’t making comparisons to the broader, more random approach used in New York.
Parker Collins Photo
“I think [stop-and-frisk] has a merit,” said Abdussabur (pictured), “but it is a small piece.” In addition to taking an offensive stance against crime — allowing police officers to pat down anyone viewed as suspicious — stop-and-frisk offers a preventative measure by gathering information to create a databank of people, he argued. “I know you haven’t committed a crime,” explained Abdussabur, “but just in case you commit a crime in the future.”
However, Abudssabur agreed with Elicker that the tactic, if abused, can lead to racial profiling. Abudssabur has published books criticizing police in some communities for racial profiling while also advising young African-Americans to avoid inciting officers.
Both Elicker and Abdussabur agreed that the stop-and-frisk program presents a double-edged sword. Abdussabur compared the practice to cancer treatment: getting rid of a dangerous tumor while “also damaging the relationship between the police and the community.”
Throughout his workshop, Abdussabur stressed the importance of the relationship between law enforcement authorities and the people they protect, how mutual understanding can help grease their interactions. When neither side understands the other, “it’s like shoveling coal into a fire,” he said. “it’s just going to get get hotter and hotter.”
For example, Abdussabur pointed to the hesitation some drivers have before pulling over for an officer. “Not stopping at the right time can spiral into something totally different,” said Abdussabur, leading authorities to wonder, “why is this person not stopping?” This agitation can mean the difference between an officer seeing, say, a box cutter as a tool or as a weapon.
“People want a relationship with an officer,” Elicker (pictured) said over pizza and fruit juice after the workshop. In Elicker’s opinion, true community policing, in which citizens are “more willing to share information if they trust the officer,” has the potential to hamper crime just as much, if not more, than stop-and-frisk.
Within New Haven, Abdussabur said stop-and-frisk has not been abused. He agreed it “cannot be a permanent part” of the officer’s tool belt.