Black Leaders Call On NYPD To Bring Back Anti-Crime Unit

Black politicians and community leaders are calling on the New York Police Department (NYPD) to bring back the plainclothes anti-crime unit that was eliminated last month.

According to the National Review, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams criticized the decision to disband the NYPD unit as shootings and murders skyrocket across the city.

“I think that a total elimination is something we need to reevaluate,” Adams told CBS New York. “Right now, bad guys are saying if you don’t see a blue and white you can do whatever you want.”

Almost 600 plainclothes officers are being transferred to other assignments, including detective work and policing neighborhoods, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said a month ago. The unit was responsible for getting guns off the streets but was said to promote distrust in law enforcement in minority communities.

Tony Herbert, an activist in New York, blamed city officials for failing to address the situation.

“The guns keep going off and now we have a 1-year-old and the blood is on the hands of the mayor and the state Legislature,” Herbert told the Review.

“Anti-Crime’s mission was to protect New Yorkers by proactively preventing crime, especially gun violence,” Lynch said in a statement. “Shooting and murders are both climbing steadily upward, but our city leaders have decided that proactive policing isn’t a priority anymore. They chose this strategy. They will have to reckon with the consequences.”

The decision to disband the unit was part of the City Council’s plan to cut $1 billion from the NYPD’s $6 billion budget. More than $400 million slashed from the police department was earmarked for summer youth programs, education, and family and social services. Another $500 million will be shifted toward youth recreation centers while $87 million will be used to expand broadband in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) houses.