Name: Diego Bey

Social Justice Group: 2018-2019, Race & Policing

Date of Fieldwork: January 11, 2019

Name of Organization: center for policing equality

Person (people) with whom I met and their job titles: Tracie Keesee former Denver police chief

Type of Fieldwork: Interview

What I did:

we interviewed Tracie Keesee, the former Denver police chief, over the phone.

What I learned:

through this fieldwork, I learned a lot more about the quota system and how it affects the way police do their jobs. even though quotas were made illegal in 2010 they still exist but aren’t openly stated. the issue with this system is that it forces police to make arrests even if nothing is going on so they end up just making false arrests that later get dismissed just to fill their quota. this also makes cops target those with less power and influence for these arrests because if a cop, for example, arrested a rich white man to try and fill their quota and that man was released with no charges and was upset about the encounter could sue the police department or rally people to fight against it. on the other hand, if the cop targeted a poor or homeless person and then they get released what can they do they can’t afford a personal lawyer and they won’t have other more powerful people to fight with them.

What I learned about Social Justice “work” and/or Civil and Human rights “work” from this fieldwork:

from this fieldwork, I learned that having lots of knowledge about both sides of the story is very helpful in trying to solve the problem. for example, Tracie having been in the police force has experienced the problems in the police system has experienced these issues firsthand, like the quota system. this helped her to try and fix this system because seeing the effects firsthand, and even being affected by them, gave her the insight she needed to try to find a solution that works. in conclusion, knowing both sides of the problem is essential in finding a proper solution.