As a resident of Lansing but a visitor to Ann Arbor, public safety policy still impacts me and my friends who live in the city, so I support this resolution as a "so far so good" step toward reducing police violence and actually improving the safety of all people in the city's borders. I also hope that Ann Arbor can create a positive model of defunding police for my own city to follow. I have experienced several times an impulse to call 911 to check on a neighbor's wellness, to check for domestic abuse, etc. but did not do so out of a concern that police presence would only further escalate the situation and this program has the potential to create a positive avenue for those types of public safety calls.
All this being said, I also want to underscore that the best way to fund this program is via the police budget, not any other budget. I would consider it a step forward and two steps back if a program to replace police presence and response was not funded from the police budget.
As a resident of Lansing but a visitor to Ann Arbor, public safety policy still impacts me and my friends who live in the city, so I support this resolution as a "so far so good" step toward reducing police violence and actually improving the safety of all people in the city's borders. I also hope that Ann Arbor can create a positive model of defunding police for my own city to follow. I have experienced several times an impulse to call 911 to check on a neighbor's wellness, to check for domestic abuse, etc. but did not do so out of a concern that police presence would only further escalate the situation and this program has the potential to create a positive avenue for those types of public safety calls.
All this being said, I also want to underscore that the best way to fund this program is via the police budget, not any other budget. I would consider it a step forward and two steps back if a program to replace police presence and response was not funded from the police budget.