Delete the Racially-Biased Gang Database

The message:

The NYPD maintains a vast and unaccountable database of thousands of people who it alleges are members of gangs. The criteria for including someone in the database are vague and ripe for abuse. These flawed practices have led to a database that is 99 percent Black and Latino boys and men.

Take Action:

Tell City Council leadership to schedule a hearing on a bill that would end the gang database and prevent similar ones in the future.

The recipients:

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin
Council Member Oswald Feliz, Public Safety Chair

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Subject

Message

The NYPD maintains a vast and unaccountable database of thousands of people who it alleges are members of gangs. While the NYPD claims this is an evidence-based tool, the criteria for including someone in the database are vague and ripe for abuse. In the hands of the NYPD, this leads to targeting Black and Brown people and those who live in public housing, as well as criminalizing normal youth behavior. The results reveal stark racial bias: The database is 99 percent Black and Latino boys and men.

Being listed in the gang database can have a devastating impact on people’s lives. The NYPD subjects them to increased surveillance and profiling, leading to arrests for low-level offenses like jaywalking or littering followed by hours of questioning. To avoid interactions with police, people on the database report censoring what they say on social media, forgoing visits with friends and relatives, and avoiding taking their children to the playground.

None of this activity keeps New Yorkers safe. But it does rupture people’s ties to their families and communities.

We should not be targeting boys and men for their race, ethnicity, residence, what they wear, or who their friends and family members are. It’s time to end the gang database for good.

Int. 460 would erase the database and prevent another database from taking its place in the future. I’m counting on you to schedule a hearing on this bill.

Sincerely,

[First Name] [Last Name]

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Delete the Racially-Biased Gang Database

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