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Policing body cameras

Montgomery County Police should release more footage

Lilli Libowitz Assistant Opinion Editor

Montgomery County residents were shocked last March when they saw a video of two officers berating and handcuffing a 5-year-old African American boy at East Silver Spring Elementary School. New legislation has just been passed to randomly review police body camera footage -- but this legislation doesn’t go far enough.

According to the body camera footage of this incident, the young boy left school and refused to return to campus. The officers walked the boy back to the school while also verbally harassing him. One of the officers even went to the extent of handcuffing the child in an attempt to frighten him.

This is unacceptable. We cannot allow police officers to continue racial profiling and putting youth,in danger. We have a societal duty to hold these officers accountable and prevent incidents like these from happening in the future.

The incident at the Silver Spring Elementary School prompted County Council President Tom Hucker to introduce Bill 18-21 Police – Internal Affairs Procedures and Reporting Requirements for the random review of police body camera videos in Montgomery County. A study of the bill’s impact conducted by the county found that this reform will likely “reduce racial inequities in policing and policing outcomes by holding more police officers accountable for misconduct and racially biased policing.”

Police body cameras supply auditory and visual evidence of events that have occurred. According to NPR, a Texas police officer was charged with murder and sentenced to 15 years and given a $10,000 fine after shooting an unarmed black teenager. The footage from the officer’s body camera contradicted his original statement about this event and led to his arrest.

While this bill can be used as a preventative tool, it is also flawed as officers are only required to wear cameras when they are in uniform. This exempts plainclothes and undercover officers from this rule.

There is yet another issue as the bill states there will be “ran-

Quick stats 2

police officers handcuffed one 5-year-old

100%

of uniformed officers are required to wear body cameras

51 mins

The police officers verbally harassed the 5-year-old for 51 minutes dom reviews of the body camera footage.” We, as the public, deserve a clearer definition of what is meant by “random” reviews of body-worn camera footage. To an even greater extent, we need a public volunteer panel to review said footage.

This bill is intended to hold the police accountable and attempt to ensure they are behaving ethically and legally. While I support this bill, I do not think it currently goes far enough.

These cameras are a step in the right direction, however, we still need more reform. This system is extremely flawed and there needs to be more bills and laws passed to ensure the police are fairly doing their jobs.

Cartoon by Taylor Polonsky, LT

CRT CONTROVERSY

Critical race theory should be included in the curriculum

Ivan Endelman Features Editor

After three years of traditional history courses, my senior class was finally deemed ready to discuss critical race theory (CRT). I had no clue what to expect. Would tensions boil over in our discussion? Would our teacher present biased sources? Instead, we analyzed numerous sources and expressed unique opinions, with complete respect and civility.

Critical race theory analyzes U.S. history through the lens of systemic racism, an idea that has exploded across America in recent years. Americans are divided on whether schools should support, teach or even discuss CRT.

This brief senior unit is reflective of CESJDS’s stance on the theory; the school isn’t unequivocally embracing CRT but isn’t shying away from the topic either. By introducing the theory’s ideas in a constructive manner, JDS is fostering a better understanding of American history. The school’s approach stems from a framework called the Diversity Equity Inclusion and Justice (DEIJ) Learning Framework. The document was carefully crafted by administrators in the 2021-2022 school year and commits to teaching about inequality, injustice and privilege. In today’s polarized climate, addressing these topics is bound to trigger some level of alarm. In Washington Jewish Week, parents of JDS alumni raised concerns through an open letter. The letter expresses fear that the framework discourages free thought and mainstreams a radical ideology.

In reality, there is very little evidence to necessitate this reaction. Neither teachers nor students are restricted by this document. During my history class’s discussion, minority opinions were freely shared without any animosity or angry responses. I am glad that our school is able to instill freedom of speech and thought while also introducing us to critical theories.

Despite this, one phrase in particular from the framework has drawn the most criticism. “Students will recognize that power and privilege influence relationships on interpersonal, intergroup and institutional levels and consider how they have been affected by those dynamics while identifying figures, groups, events and a variety of strategies and philosophies relevant to the history of social justice around the world.”

Recognizing “power and privilege” was specifically critiqued in the parent-written op-ed. The op-ed authors interpreted this incredibly specific sentence through a racial and political lens. While this idea could have been more clearly conveyed, the framework is acknowledging power and privilege as two factors in the larger context of history.

History Department Chair Mark Buckley teaches CRT in an unbiased way in his senior classes. He views the framework as applicable beyond the U.S. and race. “It’s [the framework] not just racial. The feudal system was built around the ideas of power and privilege, so understanding those dynamics can be applied in a variety of different contexts,” Buckley said. “I don’t think it has to be a racially charged perspective.”

While some schools have botched the implementation of CRT and become kindling for conservative pundits, JDS has not. The document itself is a general guideline of our school’s objectives and nothing more.

Since its establishment, JDS has been constantly evolving and modernizing its curriculum. But the line of unfairly restricting speech or thought is not being crossed. Teachers, administrators and students are all doing their part to continue fostering productive, analytical and respectful conversations.

BY THE NUMBERS

35%

of Americans have heard something about critical race theory and believe they have a good idea of its meaning

37%

of parents support state or school district restrictions on the teaching of critical race theory

40%

of parents oppose state or school district restrictions on the teaching of critical race theory

22%

of Americans say children should start learning about racism in kindergarten

Data collected from Ipsos and Today

Thoughts on CRT

Junior Leila Espejo

“I support critical race theory but not with only a civil rights perspective. I think there are other types of critical race theory that need to be taught. I think at CESJDS critical race theory absolutely needs to be taught due to the lack of diversity and the bubble we all live in.” “I believe CRT does have some merit and that America should take a closer look at how it has treated different races in the past. I think it should be taught at schools in a context of here’s an issue that has been of large debate in America and certain politicians believe x and other politicians believe y, and explain their reasoning for beliefs.”