Casar: How Austin curfew ordinance leans harder on black, Latino youth

Originally published in the Austin American-Statesman on 15 June 2017

Update: Today, the City Council unfortunately voted to extend the nighttime juvenile curfew. We did, on a tight vote, manage to end the daytime curfew. We’ll need your help September 28th, when we have another shot at ending the entire curfew for good.

Though a key responsibility of our city government is protecting our residents’ safety, our historic over-reliance on criminal charges, arrests and incarceration is not making us safer — in fact, in many cases it’s making our city more dangerous.

For example, in 1990 the Austin City Council created a criminal offense for a juvenile to “walk, run, idle, wander, stroll, or aimlessly drive” during curfew hours. To this day, young people can be cited with a criminal offense for merely being out in public during school hours or at night.

Below is a map showing the inequities in how this law has been enforced.

Instead of protecting us, policies like the decades-old curfew ordinance have pushed our community’s kids into the criminal justice system, thereby increasing the chances they will become victims or perpetrators of crime in the long run. Furthermore, heavy enforcement of low-level offenses wastes scarce public safety resources that could be better dedicated elsewhere.

That’s why I’m asking my fellow Austin City Council members to repeal the curfew ordinance Thursday — and why the City Council must continue moving forward on smart criminal justice reforms that make us safer.

Take, for example, the story of an Austin middle-schooler, who we’ll call Michael. Michael faced several challenges at home and school. Though he initially struggled with attendance, he began coming to school every day after working with his social worker. One day, Michael became upset at school and left early to blow off some steam. Police stopped him for a curfew offense.

Criminal charges and court dates punished Michael at a time when he needed support and encouragement. These unnecessary charges led Michael to drop out of school, making him statistically more likely to face incarceration, live in poverty and experience poor health.

This economic and social damage, multiplied many times over by the massive number of people arrested and incarcerated, exacerbates poverty and inequality. Research shows this creates more crime, not less. Michael’s story is a real example of how law enforcement practices that may come with good intentions can ultimately be counterproductive to our community’s overall safety and success.

Laws like the curfew ordinance concentrate this harm in communities of color. Between 2014 and 2016, black youth in Austin received 16 percent of all curfew violations, though they make up only about 8 percent of the city’s population of children ages 10 to 17. Latino youth received 60 percent of violations but make up 51 percent of that population. Meanwhile, their white peers make up about 29 percent of the population but received just 20 percent of the curfew violations.

If we want to reduce violence in our communities, especially in communities of color, we must address the root causes of crime. That means we’ll face difficult choices ahead on how we spend our limited resources — both tax dollars and police time.

Consider the resources we’ve unnecessarily spent enforcing the curfew law: Austin police handed out 2,123 curfew violations between 2014 and 2016 alone. Those resources would be better spent addressing the dangerous circumstances Austin’s children face, like homelessness, family violence and food insecurity.

Recently, the City Council has taken some positive steps to meaningfully improve public safety. We created a sobriety center to move more people into treatment instead of jail; implemented a fair chance hiring policy to provide opportunities for job applicants with conviction histories; challenged the discriminatory Senate Bill 4 in court; and made historic investments in health and human services to address crime at its root.

There’s more we can do to change old “tough-on-crime” practices like the curfew ordinance, which are making our communities less safe. The City Council needs to take on racial profiling; reduce jail bookings for ticketable offenses; radically rethink our response to mental health issues; and adopt an employment contract for Austin police officers that acknowledges our community’s need for increased transparency and accountability.

By voting to end the youth curfew law today, the City Council can show Austinites that we’ve learned from the mistakes of the past. We’re ready to move forward with data-driven policies rooted in fairness — with the goal of improving safety for everyone.

Casar is an Austin City Council member representing District 4.