Amsterdam News: New report takes anti-gang initiative ‘Operation Crew Cut’ to task

“A new report unveiled today details how much harm both of these operations have reaped on New York’s Black and Brown teenagers.

“Gang Takedowns In The De Blasio Era: The Dangers of Precision Policing” details how, through large scale conspiracy cases, how thousands of juveniles and adults were arrested and placed in a secretive gang database and were subjected to threats, surveillance and harassment. The report is part of the announcement of the Erase The Database NY Campaign that includes The Legal Aid Society, JustLeadershipUSA, the Bronx Defenders, LatinoJustice PRLDEF, VOCAL-NY and various community organizations.

Produced by Josmar Trujillo and The Policing and Social Justice Project at Brooklyn College Professor Alex Vitale, the report reveals how the new focus on loose associations of young people to gang members came right when the NYPD’s “stop-and-frisk” practices came under scrutiny. The report shows how the force used this as a roundabout way to keep taps on young people of color using the term “gang” to keep the public from knowing what’s really going on.”

Read the full article here