“You do not need a certificate to care.” - Ndeye Oumou Sylla
These words are an important reminder when understanding how we respond to the needs of our communities in order to make police obsolete. These words challenge the belief that we are incapable of creating our own networks of safety, empowering us to practice new ways of caring for one another in order to eliminate our need of relying on police and prisons.
Two questions we (Walls Down Collective) often get is:
1. “How do you feel confident enough in responding to crisis calls?”
2. “What training do you have?”
While it IS beneficial to attend workshops and trainings to help make us better equipped and prepared for a variety of scenarios we may face, the reality is that the best “training” comes from practice while knowing that we all possess the ability to care.
In the 2+ years I have been a “first responder”, the most valuable “training” I have received has been from practice. No two situations are ever the same; there is no one-size-fits-all approach. No, it hasn’t always been perfect, but my response HAS always come from a place of love and care. There are definitely moments I still think about that leave me wishing I had done things differently in a situation, and those moments have allowed me to learn and adjust in order to do better. I also know, for a fact, that my involvement in those situations have been much safer for all involved as opposed to if police were involved.
Despite police proving to us on a daily basis that they are highly incapable of responding to even the most basic, low-risk situations, we never seem to expect perfection them or even hold these institutions and the people working within them to the same kinds of standards as we do for those of us trying to build something new. Many people don’t care to question the qualifications of police officers, assuming they are highly trained individuals and the only ones who can respond to high-risk situations, which just isn’t the case.
“We have been trained to believe that systems such as police, court, and prisons are created to keep us safe. But when we look at who is placed in these systems - predominately Black and Indigenous People - we can see how these systems rely on Black and Indigenous bodies for their functioning. It’s quite obvious to me whose ‘safety,’ ‘security,’ ‘justice,’ and ‘comfort’ we are upholding.” - Paige Galette, Northern Voices Rising
Did you know? It only takes up to 6 months to become an officer with the Calgary Police Service; all you need is a high school diploma and you’re qualified to carry a gun. In contrast, it takes approximately 2 years to become a licensed hairdresser in Canada and, quite frankly, I’d rather a hairdresser show up for a wellness check should I ever need one.
And this is a list of mental health training offered to Calgary Police officers. 58 hours is all it takes for them to become “experts”.
And let’s not forget the time the Calgary Police Service used a fraudulent “college” in the United States to provide PTSD “training”. This story largely got swept under the rug.
But lacking “training” is not the leading factor of what makes police unqualified to provide safety, it’s more than that - which is what this piece is meant to convey. Policing is an institution that is rooted in colonial violence; there will never be the “right” amount of training that could ever reform slave patrols into something that is positive. Additionally, police have absolutely no connection to the communities they serve, often working in neighbourhoods they don’t even live in. Police enter spaces not knowing the people, the culture or the history, then respond by utilizing the only skill they know best - use of force. Police remain accountable to no one besides themselves, all while having an entire system dedicated to supporting their actions - even when those actions lead to murder.
“Abolishing the police is a means of dismantling an inherently oppressive system that dates back to the 1700s, when slavery was - and still is - considered the most desirable system of labor organization because it allowed the master almost absolute control over the life and productivity of the laborer. Thus, abolition is the only way to end the cycle of injustice and police violence towards Black people and other marginalized communities.” - Na’ilah Williams
When we tend to our own family, friends and neighbours, we often approach with love and kindness because they are our people.
Police don’t know how it’s normal for your neighbour to talk to herself sometimes; they don’t know how the man sleeping in a tent at a local park might sometimes yell at night; they don’t know that your cousin is trying to manage their mental health but that their behavior might seem “erratic” to new people; they don’t know that it’s normal for you to go for walks around the neighbourhood late at night to help clear your mind. These are all basic scenarios that have ended in death at the hands of police.
I know the world has made you think otherwise but, we ALL have our own special skills, experience and resources to contribute to this work. No one is an expert, and that truth should be used as an opportunity to be curious and explore the ways we can show up for one another without relying on punitive and carceral measures as an answer to harm - or, perceived harm. There was a time without police, a time without incarceration, and there will be a time again. Let us remember that for those most oppressed, globally, by these systems, the act of doing something else - relying on networks of care outside of the state - is the natural instinct of a people to ensure their survival. These ideas of abolition are nothing new; these ideas of community care are nothing new.
The goal is not to create “alternatives” to policing - there should be no desire to re-create these systems. It’s about building power amongst ourselves to address the needs of our communities on our own terms. We know what we need, and we should have the full autonomy to respond in the ways that support the well-being of all rather than protecting the interest of a select few.
Comparably, I wrote a piece titled “Alternatives to Policing: Are Social Workers Really a Solution?” that I invite you to read as well, because it’s not enough to just expect new agents of the State to do what’s right and keep us safe; it's simply layered policing. Social workers have a long history of maintaining oppression, too.
"There’s no guarantee that any of these suggestions will succeed across the board. -- there will be failures. Things will go wrong. Systems will break down. Programs will fall apart. Violence may temporarily increase in some places. -- But our current system already represents a kind of profound failure. -- The question, then, isn’t whether we are willing to live with failure; communities across the country already live with failure every single day. -- The question is: Are we willing to give them a try?" - Roge Karma
"Taylor McNallie dedicates her time to seeking racial justice and collective liberation through education and hands-on work with both marginalized communities and accomplices alike. As the co-creator of Inclusive Canada, she provides education on anti-racism, white supremacy, and anti-Blackness. She is also a member of the Walls Down Collective which provides access to no-barrier resources and care such as Harm Reduction, free food programs and an alternative to local policing."
Pay Black people for their time, energy and labor.
Etransfer & PayPal: tmcnallie@gmail.com
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