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Police in schools is a fraught issue — it stands at the intersection of some of our biggest controversies. The comments under the article predictably reflect the two most common poles of the debate of “We don’t need police in schools!” and “Police in schools are great!” I don’t mean to disparage those perspectives. I admit, I basically subscribe to one of them, but I’m not trying to win any arguments in this commentary.
The news article was solid, but the issue is so big that it feels like walking in and out of the middle of a conversation. It left me with so many questions. For example, who else could we “walk the hallways” with for a day to gain more perspective on this issue? Is this a typical school? What schools have resource officers? Why or why not? Is this officer typical of people in his role? Is he the best? I feel like we heard from the students who enjoy his presence, but I was in school once, I know there are kids who would feel differently who maybe didn’t speak up. The article mentioned that he may be leaving soon, so do officers become experts in building these relationships just in time to leave? What will his absence to do the school?
The article mentioned his experience in “narcotics and street crimes units.” What training and experience did he get before going to school? I’d love to hear from him what he’s learned throughout his career, what he has learned in formal training and daily experience that helps him to succeed with those kids.
The article also stated the officer used handcuffs only a couple of times in years. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I feel like the officer offered that information with a value judgment attached to it — but I’m not sure how it makes me feel. Should I be impressed that he handcuffed “only” two children in the past few years? Should I assume that use of force was necessary? Effective? How did those kids feel? Their classmates? Their teachers? Who felt protected that day? Did anyone gain trust? Did anyone lose trust? I honestly don’t know. That idea just filled me with questions.
On these important issues, the anecdotes are super helpful, but I’m afraid they play an outsized role in the way we form our opinions. Especially when they are done so well they make a foreign experience feel deceptively familiar.
