When a fight broke out among middle school students in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in early March, a security guard intervened. The guard, an off-duty police officer, was filmed pushing the head of a 12-year-old girl of color into the ground, placing his knee on her neck for about half a minute before handcuffing her, and walking her out of the cafeteria.
In Long Beach, California, a school resource officer shot and killed an 18-year-old student, a young mother named Mona Rodriguez, as she was driving away from the school after a fight.
These incidents of police violence remind us that the presence of police officers in schools does not keep students safe. Instead, officers often use excessive force and sometimes even violence, especially against students of color.
