Opinion: In the past few years, police brutality has shaped the way we view the police force as an institution. When it comes to their presence on college campuses, some have begun questioning if these officers even have a role anymore.
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After the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, many people seriously reevaluated the way they view the police force as a whole. On one side, there were calls to defund police, while other people became their local PD’s biggest supporters. Three years later, tensions have slightly lessened. But one thing hasn’t: the polarization of the issue. So now I question if police officers are a necessary aspect of campus life?
There are two sides of this story to consider. First, these officers are stationed on college campuses to ensure that the campus remains a safe environment where students feel comfortable walking at night. Second, these officers are there to watch the students for the first sign of “trouble,” and they commonly make students feel less safe at night — especially students of color.
As a student of color who lived on campus last year, I have felt uneasy walking home with a police headlight lighting my path. Even though I have done nothing wrong, I still have a fear of police, so having them in the spaces I lived and worked in was an intense experience.
Having said that, there were also moments where I was truly grateful for the police presence on the University of Oregon campus. I remember being chased down the street by a group of men; fearing for my safety, I just started running toward campus and my dorm. I ended up running right to a police car parked outside my dorm, and I have never been more thankful.
The police being on campus saved me that night, and I am grateful. But is it worth the anxiety I felt on so many other nights? I wonder if I would have felt safer if the officers were not armed with a gun.
The official University of Oregon Police Department website highlights their understanding of the mistrust between students and police officers and mentions that they are dedicated to transparency and understanding. They also started a board of students and faculty to interview potential new employees.
As well as wearing body cams, a variety of new programs aimed at creating a safe space for students to express their concerns directly to the UOPD have been introduced. I must applaud their efforts. If cops on campus are going to continue, this is the only acceptable way for it to happen. However, if their job on campus is to help students feel safe, the question remains: Is it an effective position? Are students actually feeling safer on campus? Have dorm break-ins become a thing of the past? And if not, then how effective is a police presence on campus?
From what I can gather, the answer to those questions is no. Clearly the safety of students has not been insured by police forces patrolling college campuses. So what happens next? The number of officers on campus could be lessened, or they could change to only carrying non-lethal weapons. All that remains clear is that change is needed. And police officers on campus are not the necessity they claim to be.
