Episode 5: What happens next

This episode is from Stop and Frisk, a podcast production from WHYY News and Temple University’s Logan Center for Urban Investigative Reporting.

Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

When WHYY asked listeners for their opinions, the answers were conflicting:

“I’m against stop and frisk. It’s a violation of our rights,” said Deidre.

“Provided it is done within the constraints of the constitution, I think the prevailing levels of crime make it worth considering,” said Chuck.

The panel in Episode 5 of “Stop and Frisk: Revisit or Resist” features Philly residents, nonprofit leaders, and young people discussing ideas and asking important questions, and not just about stop and frisk.

Some at the table thought police should be involved, like Ajourdi Hargrove: “The solution of community policing does involve police along with community; it’s people and police. There’s a P in both words. You understand what I’m saying to you? That equals power.”

Adam Geer, the Philadelphia Deputy Inspector General for Public Safety, said that police aren’t currently able to fully engage with the communities they work in. “The reality is we’re short-staffed… they can’t do these things that I think would be effective, like building community communications and community relations with the people in the neighborhoods that we need so that we can get the information on the individuals who are causing the most problems.”

More questions arose, such as whether gun violence is a public health issue, why the city seems to be in favor of more drastic, shorter-term solutions, and how much Black and brown people in leadership really know what’s going on in the streets of Philadelphia day to day.

When we asked young people what we are supposed to do about this crisis,16-year-old Taahzje Ellis said issues like stop and frisk need a spotlight:

“This is a conversation that needs to go down, especially with the youth, because we have to be the ones to rise up… who will be the ones to project our voices to the world? This is awfully important for everyone to know and learn about, especially if you’re Black or brown.”

This final podcast episode could be the start of the conversations that are needed to tackle the underlying issues that threaten public safety.

Listen to Episode 5 of “Stop and Frisk: Revisit or Resist” to hear some community-generated potential solutions to curbing gun violence and improving relations between the community and police.