Nature Welcomes Queer People When Society Doesn’t
For the city’s LGBTQ community, Toronto’s outdoor spaces have been sites of both liberation and violence
Police Brutality
Will Washington’s Police Accountability Measure Work?
Frank Hopper shares the story of how Washington’s Puyallup Tribe helped pass Initiative 940, the nation’s first measure ending qualified immunity for police.
Video | Defunding Police | Black Lives Matter | #DefundPolice | YES! Presents: Rising Up with Sonali
Black Americans Back Defunding Police
A new survey by the Movement for Black Lives finds that a majority of Black Americans support reallocating police funding toward community care.
Seeking Safety as a Black Woman in New Cities
After moving to several unfamiliar cities in the past year, author and scholar Norell Edwards asks: “What does allyship look like while protecting my own safety?”
How Black History Paves the Way for a Just Black Future
Alicia Garza is searching for Black-led solutions to some of the biggest problems of our democracy—solutions that go far beyond a hashtag.
The Anti-Blackness at the Root of Police Violence
Scholar Rashad Shabazz explains how anti-Black bias is so central to American policing that even Black officers are influenced by it.
Why Fatal Police Interactions Are Avoidable
Police too often claim that confusion during an encounter caused them to fire fatal shots, as in the case of Patrick Lyoya. But there are solutions.
The U.S. Constitution Was Meant to Be a Work in Progress
Author and legal scholar Elie Mystal’s first book argues that the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights are deeply flawed, but that it’s still possible to use them to protect the rights of women and people of color.
An Afro-Indigenous Perspective on Policing
In his new book, Kyle T. Mays argues that the violence of policing has always been intimately tied to U.S. democracy.
How U.S. Wars Abroad Are Intimately Tied to Police Brutality at Home
The demands to defund the police are linked to the call for ending militarism. There is a strong case to be made for these movements to join forces against both forms of violence.
Reimagining a Better World After George Floyd’s Death
This special audio report from YES! and Public News Service explores the ways communities affected by police violence are organizing to keep each other safe, in Minneapolis and beyond.
The Capitol Insurrection and White Supremacist Infiltration of US Police
There is a long history of racism in U.S. policing. For all Americans to be truly safe, it is important to weed out White supremacy, especially in the institution sworn to protect us all.
Native Americans on Police Response to Capitol Insurrection
“No way would Black or Brown people be treated that way had they attacked a symbol of our democracy.”
What Comes Next for Portland’s Protests?
After more than 100 days of continual demonstrations, protesters in Portland are looking to the future—and each other—for ways to sustain their movement for Black lives.
How Portland Protesters Keep Each Other Safe
“Protesting ultimately isn’t safe and we’re not trying to say that it is,” says one Portland street medic. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t take care of each other.”
Inside Portland’s Autonomous Protest Movement
Portland, Oregon’s five months of ongoing protests in support of Black lives are sustained by a vast, multifaceted, and ever-evolving network of activists, organizers, and mutual aid.
#EndSARS: Inside Nigeria’s Fight to End Police Brutality
Demanding an end to the escalating violence of Nigeria’s Special Anti-Robbery Squad has mobilized youth across religious and ethnic divides.
Police Encounters During Mental Health Crises Don’t Have to Be Violent
In the wake of another police killing of an unarmed Black man struggling with a mental health disability, I asked what cops—and everyone—can do to help.
Rochester Police Killed an Unarmed Black Man Having a Mental Health Crisis
“I placed the phone call for my brother to get help, not for my brother to get lynched," says Joseph Prude.
History Shows Federal Agents Don’t Stop Civil Unrest
Militarized federal interventions can actually escalate conflict and often leave the underlying causes of protests or crime unresolved.
Are Police Unions Part of the U.S. Labor Movement?
Historically, police have used their legal authority to protect businesses and private property over the working class.
How the Police Killing of a Black Brazilian Teen Sparked a Movement
The police killing of João Pedro Mattos Pinto, a 14-year-old Black Brazilian in Rio de Janeiro, unmasked the scope of police brutality amid a pandemic and led to an unprecedented court decision.
What #DefundPolice Can Do For Public Safety
Cities imagine taking away resources from racist, oppressive policing and putting it toward public safety and social services.
“It’s About Terrorizing Us”: Environmental Racism Expert Draws Parallels With Police Brutality
“If this moment can be sustained through further conversations, I think there can be a breakthrough.”
Cities Reimagine Public Safety Amid Calls to #DefundPolice
Lawmakers across the country are proposing policy measures to cut or loosen ties to traditional policing.
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