Stop & Search – I Want People Power
Politicians mistakenly think they have to solve all our problems - they do not. What they need to do is remove the obstacles and barriers that prevent us from solving our own problems - there is a huge difference. Individuals should have the power to change their lives through the decisions they make, a society’s role is to help them make the best decision.
One such problem where we need people to make better decisions is around knife crime which is a huge problem across the UK, especially in the cities. What hardly anyone wants to acknowledge is that this particular crime is predominately a young black male problem – they are more likely to be the victim and perpetrator. The reasons why this is the case are not important for this article, but they are important if we want to solve this problem. Maybe an article for another day exploring culture, history, fatherlessness, and poor parenting.
Let us look at the best tool we have for deterring people from carrying knives – Stop & Search. This is a power that allows police officers to stop and search a member of the public if they have 'reasonable grounds' to suspect they are carrying a weapon, but also illegal drugs, stolen property, or something which could be used to commit a crime, such as a crowbar.
This police power has for many decades been tarred with accusations of racism because it is used more frequently on black men which it is. This led to the birth in the 1970s of local community race-baiters who could not understand why there were differences in the rate of use in relation to ethnicity. The myth that Stop & Search is racist was born.
These individuals are an example of non-elected community leaders speaking on behalf of a community while simultaneously increasing their status, reputation, and income. We have seen how the BLM movement turned out to be a money-grabbing con which only benefited those involved. Let us not forget the nasty, racist piece of work called Sasha Johnson who wanted to defund the police in London. She was shot in the head at a party by black men, no witnesses came forward. Professional race-baiters do not believe that black lives matter, only money and power.
Has the reduction of Stop & Search benefited the black community? I suppose it depends on what metric you use to judge. If we use the rate of dead young black men then it is obvious that there has been no benefit, only an increase in devastated parents.
If I am elected Mayor of Greater Manchester in May 2024, I will be increasing Stop & Search across the region because I believe that black lives matter. If this makes me a racist then so be it. I must be a very strange racist for trying to stop young black men from dying in pools of their own blood.
How do I get around the controversy of increasing this police power and the risk of a race-baiting backlash? The answer is simple. I give the power to the people for that is where it should reside.
I will give every council neighbourhood a mini referendum at the same time as the local council elections. This will make it simpler to manage and keep costs low. Voters will be asked if they want more Stop & Search in their neighbourhood.
If they vote for more, they get it.
If they do not, then things stay the same.
We let the people who live in these areas decide on the level of police interference which is acceptable to them.
With a tick on a ballot paper, we render the influence of the race-baiters obsolete. They no longer represent the will of the people because the ballot box supersedes such individuals. We allow the community to decide if they want their young people searched to save their lives.
If they vote NO and children are stabbed to death then the community cannot completely blame the police. Decision-making comes along with personal responsibility.
If they vote YES and later decide it was a mistake for their young people are unhappy at being searched then the people can vote NO the following year. You are allowed to change your mind in a democracy.
Allowing local people to have a direct say on what civil servants do in their neighbourhood is a novel idea, but do not forget that they work for us. Giving people power over their future has become an old-fashioned idea for the poor and stupid always make the wrong decisions, remember Brexit.
The Mayor does not have the power to create new laws so any increase in Stop & Search will still need to hit the legal threshold of 'reasonable grounds'. But in the neighbourhoods that vote YES, a signal will be sent to the police that they are supported by the local community. Currently, many suspected black criminals are not stopped and searched because police officers are terrified of being accused of racism. This ends when the community empowers them to be crime fighters, not social workers.
Having worked in the most crime-ridden areas of Greater Manchester, I guarantee that 99% of areas will vote for more Stop & Search, regardless of the level of diversity. All decent people want more policing because it keeps them safe. It is only those with hidden agendas that do not.
Let us take the politics out of Stop & Search by directly involving local communities in the policing strategies for their area.
Most importantly, let us stop young black men from stabbing each other to death.
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