The Game - Winning by Reimagining Policing through Participatory Action Research

• In Event: Halfway There Far to Go All at Once: Reimagining Policing, Making Baltimore Neighborhoods Safe and Strong

Abstract

The authors for this paper describe the coopting and transforming approach in this NSF funded initiative. Coopting, which means adapting existing police resources for a new purpose—a new mandate, involves shifting the focus of policing from law enforcement outputs, such as arrests and the seizure of guns and drugs, to community outcomes, i.e., strong, safe community outcomes, where a new game appears. The new game lends itself to increased feelings of safety and security within neighborhoods. While transforming means to create and embrace new practices in policing, communities will be better off when a strong neighborhood mandate peels back from the law enforcement mandate.

Authors

• James Nolan, West Virginia University

• Natasha C. Pratt-Harris, Morgan State University

• Henry Brownstein, West Virginia University