Five years of Measure Y: community problem solving officers

Violence in Oakland is a persistent issue, one reason it was recently ranked as having the third highest crime rate in the United States.  But that ranking is based on last year’s data, and doesn’t reflect that crime has actually gone down by 13 percent in 2009.  One could say it is in thanks to a landmark violence prevention initiative called Measure Y, passed by voters back in 2004.  In the year 2000, Oakland residents voted to approve Measure Y, which allocated 20 million dollars a year for ten years toward a coordinated fight against crime and violence.  It was meant to increase support for the police, for citizens, and for community organizations.

For this report, Mills College fellow Sandhya Dirks looks at two integral elements of Measure Y, now five years after its implementation…First, we look at the creation of a community police force, or as they are known in Oakland, Problem Solving Officers.

Go to the Fault Lines Project page to hear the other reports in our series, to read blogs by our reporters, and to participate in online discussions around these important issues.