Opinion: We owe it to our community and our neighbors to engage and transform Urban Shield
Urban Shield may be in need of a course correction, but that does not mean we should simply disengage from it.
Urban Shield may be in need of a course correction, but that does not mean we should simply disengage from it.
The importance of Urban Shield in training police to respond to disasters is exaggerated. Berkeley should exit the program to rebuild good faith between police and people of color.
While it took a majority to turn their back on their citizens on the Urban Shield decision, I am particularly dismayed by City Councilman Ben Bartlett’s vote.
Activists who protested two arrests made after a city council meeting say an elderly man was hit by a police baton in the aftermath.
Jesse Arreguín not only failed to lead the resistance, but actually reversed votes the council had made in December 2015 to pull out of Urban Shield.
With the vote to remain in Urban Shield, and the deployment of the already highly weaponized police force, representative government on Tuesday failed the city of Berkeley.
Berkeley's mayor, City Council, and every member of its police force should be ashamed of their decision to continue with the poisonous disaster that is Urban Shield.
Police and firefighters will continue participating in Urban Shield for a year while a subcommittee considers alternatives. The decision prompted outrage from a packed room.
There is no excuse for this City Council not to do what the council should have done a year and a half ago: take us out of Urban Shield and NCRIC.
Urban Shield’s racist, 'warrior cop' nature stands in clear contradiction with Berkeley’s values; pulling the city out should be a no-brainer based on that alone.
The city of Berkeley has just launched a new disaster alert system set to replace the old way of spreading the word about emergencies.
In a late-night move that sparked ire in the crowd, council announced it would postpone its vote on whether to continue to participate in the controversial Urban Shield program.
The sooner Berkeley rejects Urban Shield’s message by ending its participation, the sooner better training modalities which reflect our values will come into being.
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