Swipe It Forward
You have seen it every morning, and every evening: In the train station, someone looks at you as you push past the turnstile hoping you realize they need a swipe; when you miss them and they jump the turnstile they are quickly ticketed or arrested.
For many years fare beating has been a top arrest category in NYC. Join us as we demand an end to the trauma of Broken Windows policing. Under Broken Windows there have been 30,000 fare beating arrests a year with 92% of them being people of color. These arrests for a $2.75 swipe cost the city over $50 million a year, can lead to deportation and removal from public housing. Meanwhile $50 million is more than enough to cover year round access to public transportation for the 30,000 people the city would rather arrest. We know the impact of Broken Windows fare beating arrests is not just the $1,750 it costs to arrest someone but the immeasurable collective trauma of over 150,000 potentially lethal police interactions a year, once we include ticketing.
We want more. The Safety Beyond Policing campaign along with a citywide network of activists are joining community members to demand more. We will be swiping our fellow New Yorker’s in, preventing arrests and caling for the end to Broken Windows policing and investment into our communities. Instead of feeding our people into jails that break our bodies and feed on our spirits, we should use our tax dollars to provide access to public transportation.
For more information, visit www.safetybeyondpolicing.com.
#NoNewNYPD