CONTENTS

part one: how to never call the cops again

1. theories
2. practices
3. tactics

part two: i did everything right and someone still called the cops! what now?!”

1. be a safe person yourself
2. know your ops
3. know your rights
4. the 3 P’s of self advocacy

INTRODUCTION

how to never call the cops again

THEORIES:

why we believe we should never call the cops, and what we should do instead

community based safety: start with the solution

• who is it for? CBS is for everyone. all it takes is one person, to create chaos and violence, and all it takes is one person to stand up against chaos and violence.
  • (*note: It’s also important to assess safety in each individual situation for yourself. How does your identity/ experiences impact interactions? We are all responsible to create safety in our communities but we must first establish that we are going to be safe ourselves.)
• what is it? Community based safety is a method of crisis intervention and response that does not require outside interference but instead relies on members of the community to step up and speak up in situations where there is potential of harm, or active harm
• when does it happen? CBS is always happening. The mindsets and practices of safety aren’t something we pick up and put down when it’s convenient to us.
• where does it happen? CBS happens wherever we are. Our homes, grocery stores, bus stops, cars, hospitals, places of work, and more.
• Why do you think CBS would be better than calling cops/ 911?
  • (example answer) I personally believe CBS is better because it makes me feel like a good member and co-owner of my community. It makes me feel connected to others, purposeful, caring, and kind. It aligns with my values and protects my loved ones from the violence of armed officers on the streets.
• how do we start? We start by paying attention, creating safety inside ourselves, and knowing what we believe and why. We finish by practicing until it’s as known to us as breathing.

abolition: end carceral culture

• community based safety is rooted in abolitionist thought and praxis. Practicing CBS is inherently abolitionist, and abolitionists are the ones defining and creating new methods of safety in their communities.
• abolition is a politic defined by the burning desire to see the end of punitive and carceral culture and the actions and theories that underpin those ideas.
• abolition occurs first in our own minds, now, when we decide to kill the cop in our minds. from there abolition continues to unravel itself in our lives;
• it takes place first inside of you, then inside of your home as your beliefs and behaviors begin to change and then in your neighborhood and community as the ideas of justice and care and repair take root in place of the propaganda of punitivism.
• abolition isn’t just better; it is necessary. without abolition the path we are on can only lead us all to more sufferring, hatred, violence, oppression, and maybe one day, to extinction. abolition (of the white supremacist patriarchal system and the punitive institutions that enforce that system) is the basis for all forms of justice; environmental, racial, gendered, disabled, etc etc etc
• being an abolitionist takes 2 key actions: 1–to shut up, listen and learn and 2–to take those lessons and apply them to rewiring your thoughts and beliefs about fairness, punishment, justice, etc.
• (list of prompts to kill the cop in your head;)

transformative justice: begin by listening

• you are the arbiter of transofrmative justice in your life.
• transformative justice says that by navigating conflict and repairing harm we can build stronger and more resilient connections to one another and safer spaces, and better outcomes for victims and survivors, and transformintive justice also says that the perpetrators of violence and harm are also victims in need of healing and repair.
• transformative justice takes place any time harm occurs and we attempt to repair it so that we can fix the brokenness between us
• it can happen anywhere and in a myriad of ways; transformative justice is a third space skill, it takes from the existing colonial structures and tools to form itself, like a cyborg or android scouring a junkyard for parts. (*first space=colonizing space second space=liberalism/ petite bourgeious space third space=liberatory space)
• what do you think? do you think transformative justice would be a better tool in your life than the tools you currently use to respond to and cope with harm?
• start by listening inside yourself. when someone wrongs you or someone you love what are your first thoughts? do you think “they deserve harsh punishement?” do you respond punitively? or reparitively?

PRACTICES:

ways we transform ourselves daily and our communities to create safety together

prevention: end violence before it starts, by pulling from the root

• know your neighbors 
  - care about building relationship with those around you. talk to strangers so that they won’t be strangers anymore. care about listening deeply to others stories. let people be seen and known by you in the ways you too desire to be seen and known
• have hard discussions 
  - be willing to hold others accountable but also to be held accountable yourself
  - get comfy being uncomfortable. your discomfort is often cognitive dissonance and defensiveness. if you value safety and value others, you have to be willing to listen to what they say even if it feels bad
  - phrases to call others out gently:
  - “what an odd thing to say out loud”
  - “i am surprised you feel comfortable saying that.”
  - “did you mean to share that with the group?”
  - “would you mind repeating that?”
• engage in mutual aid
  - help your friends. help your neighbors. grow a garden, donate old belongings or food, join buy nothing groups, feed others, clothe them. care.
• community outreach
  - get involved! join groups. have interests. bring your values and beliefs into those spaces. share abolitionist thought and move transformatively and repairitively
• education
  - be willing to do the labor of educating others
  - no one HAS to do this. it isn’t your responsibility. but unless you feel willing to move the way cops do, by picking up a gun and shooting those who disagree with you, then maybe, just maybe, learn to educate.

care: create safe spaces before conflicts and violence occur

• how do we create safety in advance? (these are all ways we care for ourselves and others) caring is the way to safety. how do you make a child who has hurt themselves feel safe again? you care. you bandage their wounds, hold their hand, reassure their emotions, and guide them through the process of doing an action again with more caution so that they can feel it in their bodies. this is the same principle, but larger.
  • material: basic needs for survival
    • many instances of harm come from the need to survive. to eat, to sleep, to shower, to live. by taking care of our own and each others material needs for survival we create the space and ability for people to use their brains and hearts
  • physical: our bodies are us
    • caring for our bodies is essential. without your body you wouldn’t be alive! figure out what your body needs for fuel, for movement, to feel strong and resilient and capable, and figure out how to give it those things!
    • respect other peoples bodies and space bubbles and expect the same treatment from others. bodily autonomy and consent go hand in hand with creating a sense of felt safety. don’t force hugs or handshakes or any sort of physical contact. don’t touch peoples shoulders, backs, hair, without their express consent. and expect the same treatment from others!
  • emotional: feelings are messages
    • be attentive to your feelings, but not consumed by them
    • feelings are just messages from our minds and bodies to help us respond to the situations we find ourselves in
    • feelings come and go. they are not permanent
    • don’t make stories. about your own feelings or others. this kind of subjective thinking can quickly become toxic for yourself and those you interact with. live in complete denial of subtext! you don’t need to read other peoples emotional subtext! just ask them direct questions, and if they cannot in some way make their needs/ desires/ boundaries/ feelings known, it isn’t on you to try and interpret.
  • mental: strong minds create powerful resonance
    • your mind is your greatest tool. use it.
    • by creating spaces of stillness and calm in your mind/ day/ life, you can begin to find your own sense of safety, feeling in fill you up, as you learn to use mental skills like meditating, breathing, creating mindspaces and more to regulate yourself and deepen your sense of introspection and self awareness.
    • find a list of tools, resources, and helpful tips in the reference section
  • spiritual: fulfilled people fill the space
    • spirituality doesn’t have to be about anything woo-woo. your spirituality can be connecting with nature, reading political theory, understanding comparitive religions, or even just finding faith and joy and hope inside yourself and your relationships.
    • spiritually centered people have a presence about them because they learn to live more presently in the moment. find your way to being present and embodied.

accountability: the entry price of community

• start with the desire for goodness for all
  - ethical accountability often requires a genuine belief in inherent goodness, or at the very least, the capability of every being to behave with goodness.
  - if we don’t believe that we each want to behave better, to live peacefully without harming one another, then what’s the point of any of this? you can’t hold someone who doesn’t give a fuck accountable for their behaviors.
  - accountability starts by figuring out what makes people give a fuck
• willingness to be wrong
  - sometimes it IS actually your fault. you are on fuckshit sometimes.
  - accept that sometimes you will be the one on fuckshit, and get used to it. familiarize yourself with what it feels like to say, “i am sorry i was wrong. I will try to do better. how can i repair this for you?”
• openness to correction and collaboration
  - listen to other peoples feelings and opinions about the experiences they are having with you. you do not live in a vaccum, and how you make others feel matters.

conflict resolution: our differences are natural, and resolution is possible

• everyone gets to speak
• respect the history
• validate emotional experiences
• be accountable for any harm
• focus on forward motion

repair: mistakes will happen! what matters is what we do next…

• center the harmed
• reflect on the reason
• correct the cause

TACTICS:

tools we use in place of police intervention during conflict, harm, or violence

• de-escalation

  • stay calm
  • active listening (give examples)
  • give validation
  • offer regulatory tools
  • assess safety
  • manage risk
  • last resorts: restraints, self-defense

• mediation

  • listen to all parties
  • verbally afirm each party’s experience
  • look for common ground
  • find the wiggle room (where they’re willing to give a little)
  • negotiate and re-negotiate until you find consensus

• peer support

  • often times what we most need is someone who is at our level, who is on the same journey. someone we trust to tell us the truth in love.

I did everything right and someone still called the cops! what now?!

• NOTE: i want to be clear that even if you follow everything here, everything below—the cops have so much power, and it is never our faults when they use that power to harm and oppress us or others. Use these tactics at your own discretion. If you feel in your chest that running away is safer, run. Learn to trust your own gut and your own sense of creating safety.

FIRST, BE A SAFE PERSON YOURSELF

• creating a sense of safety within yourself and understanding what truly creates safety in ourselves, homes, and communities helps us to exude a sense of calm and authority. Even though these tips are not directly related to talking to cops (good luck asking them to be accountable) they will help you to diffuse situations and feel safe in your own body so you can stay regulated in these moments.
  • Responsibility: you are responsible for your own safety. no one else.
  • Relationship: it is relationship to others that keeps us all safe.
  • Consent: understand that consent isn’t about sex, or intimacy, or physical contact. consent is about respecting the full autonomy of others, and honoring that autonomy and wholeness. other people don’t exist for you in the same way you don’t exist for others. connection is necessary and essential but it requires two consenting parties who are informed about what the connection requires of them and means for them.
  • Accountability: know your own fucking shit.
  • Repair: clean up your own fucking shit.

KNOW YOUR OPS

• how do the cops operate?
  • surveilling
  • profiling
    • white able bodied rich men are the standard. the further you are away from this standard the more danger you are potentially in.
    • physical harm is not the only danger. if you are not the standard, you are less likely to be believed, more likely to be punished.
  • quotas
• how does a punitive system work? in a cycle:
  • surveillance
  • accusation
  • evidentiary propoganda
  • punishment
• how do we break out of the cycle?
  • respond to surveillance with good faith
  • respond to accusation with accountability
  • respond to propaganda with truth
  • respond to punishment with responsibility, repair, and forgiveness

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

• a note on knowing your rights: it often doesn’t fucking matter. the system is deeply flawed and meant to oppress you. the system and cops in particular often do not care about your rights. but knowing them can

THE THREE P‘s OF SELF ADVOCACY

PATIENT

• don’t be in a hurry. I know we want to get away from cops as quickly as possible but that only makes them more suspicious. act as if you couldn’t care less, are not at all worried, and are simply waiting for them to run the situation.

PLEASANT

• be happy to see them. cops believe they are good, and doing good work. treating them with disdain, judgement, and hatred (while valid) is also incredibly dangerous.
• comply completely with your body language. hands by your side pleasantly, smiling, feet forward, eyes and face turned towards them. don’t fidget, bounce, pace, etc. you want to look like your ready to take a pleasant stroll through the park with a friend.

PERSISTENT

• if you ask a question that they ignore just continually circle back around to it once you’ve answered them first. “officer may I ask why you were following me for the past ten minutes, and if you are aware that its against the law to profile me?” “where are you going?” “I am on my way to visit (blank). May I know why you were following me sir? and if you are aware profiling me is illegal?”
• if you are detained, do not resist arrest. This is the quickest way to be charged, to be assaulted. practice techniques that protect your body when being assaulted in case they heighten the violence. they do not need a good reason. never ever give them one.

SOURCES

go home to the hearth.