The uprising sparked by the police killing of George Floyd on May 25 has pushed the debate around public safety into territory that would have seemed unthinkable in Texas just months ago. Howard Henderson, director of the Center for Justice Research at Texas Southern University, says the protests have turned into an unprecedented opportunity to reimagine policing in the United States. In June, Henderson gathered a group of Black criminal justice researchers and experts to center the voices of communities most affected by police violence in evaluating the barrage of policy proposals that have followed Floyd’s killing and informing policymakers. Henderson spoke with the Observer about police reform and the country’s history of race and law enforcement.
Texas Observer: How do you want this police reform advisory group to inform the debate over policing?
Howard Henderson: I’ve gathered some of the brightest minds I know around the country, and we’re essentially sifting through all of these recommendations from Democrats, Republicans, President Trump’s executive order, and other groups. First, we look at these proposed reforms and categorize them—what’s the same, what’s different, what’s unique. After sifting through all the noise, we run these ideas by the communities most impacted by policing. Then the community can say what they think about proposals A through Z.
