Written by Sasha Reva
More investment for police in Oakland could be coming due to the spike of violent crime in Oakland, Mayor of Oakland Libby Schaaf said.
“It’s been particularly heart wrenching in Oakland because we had just made national headlines for cutting gun violence in half and sustaining those lower rates for five years,” Schaaf said to Politico. “When we saw this surge come up during the pandemic, and let’s also be honest, after George Floyd, after this country just saw its faith in government justice compromised, we were just heartbroken.”
Last year was one of the worst years and one of the deadliest in Oakland history. Crime rate nationwide spiked almost up by 30 percent in 2020, and pushing the defund the police movement is not a correct way to act after everything that happened. There will be more crimes and less control, people won’t enjoy their safety and the government should assure them of their protection.
Schaaf said to Politico, “I think it was a correction to the defunct conversation, which I personally think went too far and got convoluted”. “I think everyone agrees we need to invest far more into prevention, into the root causes of crime and particularly into our mental health system which is completely failing us, both when you look at crime as well as homelessness.”
“When we listen to the communities that have been most impacted and when you look at gun violence, the communities that are paying the highest price are the communities that are paying the highest price in all areas, whether it’s income inequality, food insecurity, housing insecurity, and so we are hearing loud and clear that justice is something that they want,” commented.
Photo Cred: Getty Images
