WATCHFUL EYES: EMPTY PROMISES OF POLICE

Story by Sylvia Montgomery Photos by Julie Navarro & Sylvia Montgomery

question why a police force with Emily Grace Goldstein, a such a firm history of violence and candidate for Arcata City Council large settlement costs as a result, who has attended and spoken at would be more worthy of funding Abolish UPD protests, has elabothan student-centered programs. rated on this. “Right now, we live In response, HSU students in a society that in general focuses and community members have on policing and punishment over banded together in a movement to access to the things we need to surdefund and abolish UPD. Student vive and thrive,” said Goldsetin. protester, Klara Hernandez, said, Compared to UPD, where “Methods include promoting events students do not believe their best and knowledge on social media,” as interest is being served, Goldstein well as, “Creating events that bring commended more student-centered people together and show real proof ways of betterment and protection. that this message “Programs such as CHECK is real.” IT work to change “The “THE MOVEMENT’S cultural norms movement’s message is to fund proMESSAGE IS TO FUND and prevent harm before it occurs.” grams and resources PROGRAMS AND RE- This echoes the that will actually SOURCES THAT WILL movement’s help the people and normalize calling ACTUALLY HELP THE focus on underlying cultural them instead of the PEOPLE.” motivations police,” Hernandez of violence. said. Goldstein conWhile this may seem tinued; “We need more support and radical, it is being approached by funding for this type of program, supporters as a community driven that actually works to improve the push toward real student safety and lives and safety of HSU’s students. more appropriate use of funding. While tension has been Resting on the distrust of police, building between HSU’s student the movement’s long term goal is body and police for a considerable abolition, meaning complete dis- amount of time, the movement banding of UPD with no on-cam- behind police abolition has a long pus police. history, as Hernandez explained. However, protestors believe “The movement has been active defunding to be the first step on the since the times of slavery really, road to leaving UPD behind. The they just were able to keep silencing group posits that once funding is them by filling up the prisons or redirected to deserving student or- just murdering them” said Hernanganizations and programs, it canbe dez. utilized to create a system of safety This builds on the movemore reflective of and responsi- ment’s understanding of policing bly able to serve the community, as founded on violence and racism meaning that financial backing toward Black, Indigenous, and taken from UPD would be used to People of Color (BIPOC). “Police enrich the community it is current- are trained to be racist and violy claiming to serve as it employs lent towards BIPOC community,” consistently violent officers. remarked Hernandez. While toppling a system so deeply rooted in our culture and legislation may seem impossible, Goldstein expressed that “Reimagining an Arcata without police is something that is entirely do-able.” Since the departure of Donn Peterson, UPD has been on the hunt for a new Chief of Police, to the behest of the movement. After selecting several candidates in September of 2020, HSU hosted a series of virtual Zoom events for students “to choose which police we want so we can be happiest,” explained Hernandez, “but we don’t want any at all.” After an attempt to arrange an interview with interim Chief of Police, Scott VanScoy, VanScoy claimed that “it is difficult for me to provide many specifics as to my approach in helping the university police department build and strengthen the relationships with its community,” considering he was hired so recently. Following this exchange and the series of Zoom events for potential candidates, it was revealed by Chief of staff and Interim Vice President for Administration and Finance, Sherie Cornish Gordon, that “these candidates did not demonstrate the leadership needed for our campus.” Therefore, the search for a “permanent” Chief of Police at UPD will remain underway. While Humboldt State has expressed its intent to remedy the damage revealed by the investigation of Donn Peterson, it hasn’t publicly addressed this resulting movement or the history of brutality amongst its UPD employees. The concerns of students have been continuously overlooked and these actions do not reflect UPD’s responsibility to serve or protect

HSU students. When asked how potential supporters of this movement should get involved, both Hernandez and Goldstein emphasized the importance of gaining knowledge on the underlying issues of policing. “I believe that education is incredibly important in this movement,” Goldstein remarked. Hernandez, who manages multiple social media accounts that inform people on these subjects, gave more specific encouragement: “You don’t have to know it all to show up,” she began, “No one can know it all, they’ve been erasing history and knowledge for centuries!” While the movement’s protests have paused, the deadly and deeply rooted issues that prompted them continue. As HSU continues its search for a new Chief of Police, and attempts to fulfill their pledge of instituting real change, programs that shoulder students’ trust are being starved of the financial backing that is well deserved. “Studies have shown over and over again that police do not prevent crime; the things that prevent crime are housing, healthcare, and mental healthcare access, and having access to employment and education,” explained Goldstein, “Funding should be going towards support networks to ensure that these things are available and not punishing those that do not have access to these vital resources.”