Written consent as a tool of racial equity By Ian A.Mance This piece first appeared on The Durham News website on August 22, 2014. It has been modified to include a video mentioned in the text of the article. City Manager Tom Bonfield’s report to the City Council this week, in which he announced his […]
DPD hasn't eradicated racial bias
Panel: DPD hasn’t eradicated race bias Apr. 29, 2014 @ 11:03 PM Ray Gronberg The Herald-Sun DURHAM — Wrapping up a seven-month effort, the city’s Human Relations Commission agreed Tuesday to report to elected officials that it’d “found the existence of racial bias and profiling present” in the Durham Police Department’s practices. The statement was […]
Shocking police overreach haunts Southern city: Racial profiling, quotas and secret “conviction bonuses”
Shocking police overreach haunts Southern city: Racial profiling, quotas and secret “conviction bonuses” How a federal grant incentivized a police department to go nuts on drug arrests — and terrorize its community Spencer Woodman This article originally appeared at Salon.com on April 10, 2014. In the late afternoon of Jan. 3, Robin Dean, a […]
FADE coalition work changing the narrative around racial profiling
SCSJ is a proud partner in the Durham FADE Coalition. FADE’s work around racial profiling and selective drug enforcement is changing the narrative of the Durham community regarding policing and the Durham criminal justice system. An example of this sea-change is the recent endorsement that FADE received from Yo:Durham, a group seeking to empower marginalized […]
Time to Act to end racial profiling in Durham
In the continuing community dialogue over allegations of racial profiling and police misconduct in Durham, last night’s meeting featured presentations by SCSJ’s Ian Manceand Daryl Atkinson. Mance opened his presentation by providing an overview of DPD traffic stop data and the results of a multivariate analysis which showed race to be a statistically significant predictor […]
Join the Durham Community in Responding to Concerns About Durham Police Activity and the Death of Jesús Huerta
Press Conference Friday, January 10, 2014 3:00 p.m. Durham City Hall 101 City Hall Plaza, Durham, NC 27701 Please join us for a press conference at 3:00 p.m. at Durham City Hall to give the community an opportunity to speak out about ongoing issues with the Durham Police Department, p[articularly relating to the […]
Complaints? Gripes? Detractors? Language matters as we work to reform policing in Durham.
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, and then you win.”– Mahatma Gandhi Sticks and stones may break our bones, but we don’t like being called names either. Who does? And what does it say about the name-callers? As the year winds down, and we look back […]
FADE Coalition Responds to DPD Report
On Tuesday night, the Durham Human Relations Commission held its fourth in a series of special hearings to investigate allegations of racial profiling and selective enforcement by the Durham Police Department. For the second month in a row, Durham Police Chief Lopez and his Deputy Chiefs had the floor for the entire evening. They used […]
FADE presents evidence of racial profiling at Durham PD certification hearing
The Durham FADE coalition is participating in an ongoing dialogue with the Durham Police Department regarding data showing the use of racial profiling in police stop-and-search and marijuana arrests. As part of this movement, today two SCSJ attorneys, Soros Justice Fellow Ian Mance and Criminal Justice Reform Staff Attorney Daryl Atkinson, spoke at the Durham […]
Police deny claims of racial profiling
By Jonathan M. Alexander in The Durham News jalexander@newsobserver.com November 13, 2013 DURHAM — Despite the statistical evidence, Durham police refuted claims of racial discrimination at Tuesday night’s Human Relations Commission meeting. The commission summoned a police department representative to answer concerns about alleged racial profiling by officers in black communities and during traffic stops. […]
Group takes issue with Durham police's crime approach
Story from ABC-11 Raleigh DURHAM (WTVD) — A week after Durham police announced a drop in crime in targeted neighborhoods, a group of protesters is taking aim at the City of Durham. They say campaigns like “Operation Bull’s Eye” can lead to racial profiling. It’s something they are asking the city to change along with […]
Durham civil rights legend supports the work of FADE
Reflections by Ann G. Atwater* On Tuesday, October 1st, a standing room only crowd filled City Council chambers to address Durham’s Human Relations Commission. At Mayor Bell’s direction, the Commission heard concerns raised by FADE, a new coalition of individuals and neighborhood groups committed to Fostering Alternatives to Drug Enforcement. FADE also made specific recommendations […]
Durham community demands police accountability
SCSJ is a proud partner of FADE (Fostering Alternative Drug Enforcement), a local coalition of community members exploring the impact of the War on Drugs in Durham. On Monday, September 16, FADE held a rally in downtown Durham to “bring the collective voices of community members together to call attention and seek solutions to a […]