The spate of violence against Asian Americans, particularly seniors, has spurred communities around the Bay Area into action. In Chinatown, several groups of volunteers can regularly be seen patrolling the street, keeping an eye out for trouble. “Civic” tagged along with one group on their recent evening rounds.
Category: Public Safety
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Bay Area, Community, Public Safety, Social Services
After Violent Attacks, Community Groups Call for Social Services, Solidarity
A series of violent crimes against Asian seniors in the Bay Area has sparked concern and calls to action, including public gatherings. In San Francisco and Oakland, organizers arranged for socially distanced events over the weekend to emphasize the need for additional resources and services to advance public safety.
Posted inCity Hall, Government & Politics, Homelessness, Public Safety
New Emergency Homelessness Response Plan Calls for Elimination of Healthy Streets Operation Center
In an attempt to limit police involvement with emergency calls about homelessness, a city group is proposing eliminating a multimillion-dollar program launched in 2018.
The group, composed of representatives of about two dozen city agencies and non-profits, released a 74-page paper Tuesday outlining its plan, called the Compassionate Alternative Response Team.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Government & Politics, Open Government, Public Safety
State Senator Who Made Police Disciplinary Records Public Pushes Transparency Expansion
State Sen. Nancy Skinner wrote SB 1421 to open up law enforcement disciplinary records. In 2020, she moved to expand that legislation to grant access to records about officers who engaged in biased or discriminatory behavior or used excessive or unreasonable force.
Posted inCoronavirus, Health, News, Public Safety
SF to Open Three Large Vaccination Sites
San Francisco plans to launch three high-volume sites to manage the rollout of two COVID-19 vaccines, with the goal of reaching 10,000 people a day, Mayor London Breed announced Friday. The sites will operate in addition to existing medical facilities and smaller, pop-up sites to create a citywide vaccination network.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Data Privacy, Neighborhoods, Public Safety
Neighborhood Anti-Crime Surveillance Effort Prompts Privacy, Equity Concerns
On several streets in the Mission, you can spot sticky notes in the windows of some homes. They’re blank, but they’re sending a message: The residents would like to signal their interest in participating in a neighborhood effort to address crime, trash and visible homelessness in the neighborhood. Nuala Bishari reported on the initiative for the San Francisco Public Press. She talked with “Civic” about what she found and how she learned it.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Climate Change, Environment, Public Safety
Climate Activist: Era of Megafires Likely to Worsen Without Action
Tens of thousands of people are facing evacuation orders and threats to their safety as fires continue to blaze across the Western United States. These disastrous fires are one of the effects of climate change that scientists predicted, said climate activist Laura Neish, executive director of 350 Bay Area and 350 Bay Area Action.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Public Safety, Social Justice
Organizers Demand Reductions in Officers, Funding in S.F. Law Enforcement
At a march planned for Thursday evening in San Francisco, activists say they will demand that the Board of Supervisors put forward a budget with deep enough cuts to the city’s police and sheriff departments to reduce the number of officers in the city by 200.
Posted inCommunity, Law & Justice, Public Safety
Interest in Community Police Watch Training Soars as Courses Go Online
Berkeley Copwatch is one of several Bay Area organizations that instruct observers in how to record interactions between the public and law enforcement officials that are seeing a surge in demand for their services. The groups have shifted their tactics and focused more resources on online course delivery in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the surge in protests. They’re also ramping up misconduct tracking efforts and social media campaigns as the public focus on police brutality heightens.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Community, Public Safety, Social Justice
Oakland Activists Launch Mental Health Hotline as Alternative to Police
In response to the disproportionate law enforcement violence against people with mental illness and amid ongoing calls to defund or reform police, activists with the Anti Police-Terror Project on Friday night will launch an initiative in Oakland designed to offer an alternative to calling the police in mental health crises. The initiative, called M.H. First Oakland, will begin operations as a hotline with the number (510) 999-9MH1.