WHAT WE DO:
Fighting Anti-Gang Policing in Portland
Care Not Cops is working to end the inherently violent and racist policing of Portland's communities of color. Our work is rooted in the belief that policing endangers the health and well-being of communities. CNC understands the role of policing in enforcing social control and white supremacy which fuel gentrification, displacement, repression, and disempowerment of Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color. Currently our campaign aims to dismantle the gang policing unit of the Portland Police Bureau: the Gun Violence Reduction Team (GVRT). Anti-gang policing intensifies the violence, criminalization, and surveillance that is characteristic of policing as a whole.
Reducing the Budget and Impact of Policing
Since 2017, the Care Not Cops campaign has fought successfully for reductions in the Portland Police Bureau budget with particular focus on preventing increases in police officers, technology, and community policing programs. We have demanded the city end the use of police as first responders, invest in voluntary user-led mental health care centered in the hands of community, and dismantle the gang policing unit of the PPB. We continue to call for a reduction in police spending towards ultimately disarming and defunding the police.
