87 Search results for "surveillance unit"

Stop Cop City: The Social Movement Re-defining Community Safety
In the United States, police kill over 1,000 and injure more than 51,000 people each year. These figures are already staggering—and likely undercounted by more than half. The violence doesn’t happen in isolation. It’s built into the systems we’re told exist to protect us. And in cities like Atlanta, those systems are expanding. As a […]
Stop Cop City: Re-defining Community Safety
Stop Cop City: The Social Movement Re-defining Community Safety In the United States, police kill over 1,000 and injure more than 51,000 people each year, with evidence suggesting that these figures could be underreported by as much as 55%. In addition to these numbers being substantially higher than other developed nations, unfortunately, they are […]
Resisting constant surveillance in my predominantly white neighborhood
By Gloria Oladipo I am tired of my white neighbors watching me, my family, and other residents of color. I’m anxious that their surveillance will get my Black family hurt, especially with the unchecked power of law enforcement in our community. They take pictures of us in the park. They mount “Blue Lives Matter” signs […]
New social media checks for visa applicants show the dangerous transformation of surveillance in the US
Editor’s Note: This month at BYP, we will be exploring Black Liberation & Organizing, and we are interested in publishing works that address these topics. How do we hold politicians accountable to Black communities? Is that even possible? What should be our role in the electoral politics? What does abolition look like in practice? What […]
Now is an opportunity for Black folks to reimagine what constitutes loss
by Donnie Moreland My father is a diabetic, with chronic pain and a fragile immune system due to rounds of dialysis, which cause more pain and thus tosses him into the throws of a cycle which is, observably, hell. He is also a business owner, which necessitates an urgency of decision making, that suffers when […]
We need to respond to PTSD with community care
by Jamila Mitchell This article discusses suicide, r/pe, and other topics that may be triggering for some readers. For some reason, I found myself in pain on the floor of my bathroom with a closed door, empty pill bottles, and spilt bleach. Frantically, I reached out to people through my phone and Facebook contacts. All […]
When white women and white gay men unite in victimhood
Last Thursday, 42-year-old Bayna-Lehkiem El-Amin was sentenced to nine years in prison plus three more under supervision for his role in an altercation in 2015. His case is a cautionary tale about just how well white gay men and white women have cultivated progressive language around gender and sexuality to mask the violence of their […]
Killings by police a horrific pattern in black community
The following piece is from the Boston Globe. It was written by Akilah Johnson and Peter Schworm. By: Akilah Johnson and Peter Schworm It feels like a one-two punch for many in Boston’s black community. First, a grand jury in Missouri declined to indict a police officer for shooting to death an unarmed […]
NYPD ends Muslim surveillance program
The New York City Police Department has announced that it will be ending its monitoring of everyday activities of Muslims. On Tuesday, the department confirmed the dismantling of the anti-terrorism plan known as the Demographics Unit. The anti-terror program is getting a hard look from Commissioner William Bratton. Protocols for when and how to […]
Afrofuturist Animations
by Bryson Scott Check out the amazing and imaginative art work of Bryson Scott. Ancestral Backturn We encounter a figure turned away from us—unbothered, unwavering. Clothed in a green kimono with traditional patterns, crowned by a natural halo of hair, and framed by a serene lunar glow, this piece speaks of quiet strength. It’s a […]
Resistance Against White Terrorism: Black gun ownership
by Donnie Moreland The first time I held a gun, I was afraid. The scenario was all too awkwardly cinematic to not be memorable. It was on a vacation with my mother to my grandparents’ South Carolina home. Sitting in their entertainment room, my grandfather entered with two guns. A magnum revolver and shotgun. He […]
We Speak Our City Back: A Series on Gentrification
by Alycia Kamil We Speak Our City Back On Language, Gentrification, and Black Presence in Chicago There are stories that arrive already smoothed out. Made digestible for funders, developers, and media outlets. The kind that trades in progress narratives and polished soundbites. This is not that kind of story. This piece opens differently. The voice […]