Jun 29, 2020
My own experiences reporting on the Worcester Police Department have informed my perspective on community policing up to this point. (I would like to acknowledge my serious place of privilege as a white middle-class woman.) Writing about Officer Alexander Maracallo, the Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Initiative and the Shannon Grant painted a positive picture in my mind of the WPD's work with our City's youth. This interview with Molly Bond and Michelle Puch of Defund WPD pushed me to begin questioning the societal structures and systems I had come to accept as unchanging. We talked "guardian vs. warrior," school resource officers, and the reallocation of funding. I left with more questions than answers, but I think that might be a good thing for now. -Sarah