Category Archives: Benicia Black Lives Matter

#BBLM, #BlackLivesMatter, Anti-racism, Benicia Black Lives Matter, Benicia CA, Police misconduct, Police reform, Racism

Confronting Benicia PD’s Bias: Black Community Stopped Almost 6x More Often than White

Breaking Down Benicia Police Stops

SF Chronicle.

Benicia Police Department officers were 5.7 times more likely to stop Black people than white people based on stops per 10,000 residents. Officers stopped people 4,283 times in 2023.

SF Chronicle, by Emma Stiefe,
Passed in 2015, the Racial and Identity Profiling Act (RIPA) required California police agencies to submit detailed data on every stop their officers made to the California Department of Justice. The law was intended to end identity-based profiling. It also created the RIPA board, which releases an annual report analyzing the data law enforcement agencies submit.
RIPA requires law enforcement officers to document information on every person they stop, including the individual’s race, gender and other identity attributes. Because the data is based on officers’ perceptions, this demographic data may not reflect how a person actually identifies. The data includes all stops officers make, such as traffic stops (the majority) and pedestrian stops.
The Benicia Police Department has reported this detailed data to the state since 2022. The data below reveals significant disparities in stop rates and, crucially, in whether the stops lead to an enforcement action like an arrest. These differences have fueled a growing debate over whether to end a police practice known as pretextual stops, in which officers use relatively minor infractions — often traffic violations — to probe for guns, drugs and other larger crimes.
Racial disparities in traffic stops are likely the result of many factors, including differences across groups in driving frequency and behavior, the level of police presence in that group’s community, and racial profiling. The degree to which racial profiling causes disparities in stops is disputed, though most research suggests bias plays some role. In a 2019 Pew Research Center survey, 44% of Black adults said they believed they had been unfairly stopped by police because of their race.
Read more about how we analyzed the data here.
Read more about what politicians and police say about the data here.
Benicia Black Lives Matter, Benicia CA, Benicia Public Library, Mary Susan Gast, Poetry, Poetry in Benicia, Racism in America, Voter registration, Voting rights

CORRECTION: Benicia Freedom Summer event is this Saturday, not Sunday

Saturday at 2pm – Benicia Library presents “Freedom Summer from 1964-2024: 60 years of Voting Rights”

From the Benicia Public Library Website:

Freedom Summer 1964 was a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement, where hundreds of volunteers, primarily college students, traveled to Mississippi to register African American voters, establish Freedom Schools, and challenge the systemic racism that had long pervaded the region. This summer of activism played a crucial role in advancing civil rights and social justice in the United States.

The event will be emceed by Alice Fried of the Solano County League of Women Voters and will include two special presentations. First, former Poet Laureate Mary Susan Gast (2020-2023), who participated in Freedom Summer as a college student, will share “Gifts from Freedom Summer –1964,” followed by a unique portrayal of Fannie Lou Hamer.

Hamer, who rose from humble beginnings in the Mississippi Delta to become one of the most important, passionate, and powerful voices of the civil and voting rights movements and a leader in the efforts for greater economic opportunities for African Americans, will be brought to life by local artist and activist Linda Youngblood Wright.

The event will also include refreshments and an opportunity for Q&A about Freedom Summer 1964 and continued efforts to ensure voting rights across our country. Voter registration tables will also be set up, so that anyone who isn’t registered to vote can do so.

2– 4pm, in the Doña Benicia Room at the Benicia Public Library, 150 East L Street, Benicia. Registration is not required. This event is free and appropriate for all ages.

Disclaimers: Benicia Independent is not affiliated with either Benicia Public Library or the BUSD.