Public Safety
Over the past ten years, crime in Redwood City, like the rest of California, has declined (Report, p 11). Yet, housing, food, job, and healthcare insecurity has risen, especially during the pandemic. These negative health impacts disproportionately impact low-income residents and communities of color. BIPOC communities are also overrepresented when it comes to arrests, those on probation, in foster care, and those living in poverty.
Most recent Redwood City data shows that Latine people make up 50% of arrests when they are 36% of the population; Black people make up 11% of arrests when they are only 2% of the population; in contrast, White people make up 33% of arrests when they are 40% of the population.
In 2022, Redwood City had the highest youth incarceration rate in the county. That year, 99% of all youth in the juvenile hall were youth of color.
In San Mateo County, 53% of youth clients in Probation and 43% in Behavioral Health and Recovery Services come from the same 4 zip codes, including ours in District 3 (94063).
Our over-reliance on law enforcement to address these socio-economic issues results in the separation of families and produces unattended children, which reinforces the school-to-prison pipeline. Unfortunately, statistics like these aren’t unique, and cities everywhere need to make drastic changes to address over-policing and the root causes of harm. We must address the accelerating increase in the cost of living by reducing housing, healthcare, and basic goods costs, and invest in prevention, intervention, and re-entry services for poverty-stricken youth.
Accomplishments
I supported a strong, independent police oversight committee with subpoena powers and enforcement capability. I oppose efforts to weaken these powers and would like to see these changes for our current Police Advisory Committee.
I supported increasing the number of civilian positions to take on non-emergency calls for police, such as for private property, homeless outreach, and traffic.
I supported the development of the PACE (Purposeful Action, Creation & Engagement) Plan which provides Bike Life Movement youth with mentorship, skills development, and paid leadership opportunities, which has resulted in increased youth engagement and reduced youth-related crimes.
During my term, Redwood City was a finalist for the All-America City Award for the PACE program, the people’s budget, youth and childcare initiative, and Anti-Displacement Strategy
I held a town hall on youth health and safety to discuss current data and the ongoing work of the council to identify how we are and can continue to address negative health outcomes.
Proposals
Create opportunities for youth leadership and fund prevention, early intervention, and re-entry programs.
Expand living wage job opportunities that target those considered to be “at-risk” through strategies such as skill development training, incentivizing businesses to hire locally and utilize apprenticeships.
Increase access to resources such as food assistance, legal, behavioral health, and substance use services.