Rethinking 911: Keeping Each Other Safe
We’ve created an Alternative to 911 Guide to help our community assess when calling the police is necessary—and when it could put lives at risk. Too often, calling 911 leads to violence, criminalization, or even death, especially for Black and marginalized people. Our guide offers practical steps for conflict resolution, de-escalation, and community-based solutions that keep us safe without relying on police.
Beyond the guide, we actively go into our communities—not just to give back, but to teach and practice these principles. Through mutual aid, education, and direct action, we’re building a future where safety is rooted in care, not punishment.
📢 Let’s create alternatives together. Safety is a community responsibility.
Alternatives to 911
Assess the situation
Is this an inconvenience or can I deal with this and be okay?
Is there a comrade/neighbor/family I can call for help?
Is this something I can handle alone or do I need help?
Can I talk to this person/people?
Are there any resources out there to assist this situation?
Get to know your neighbors/community
Gather your neighbors/community members contact info to stay in touch
Transformative Justice & Conflict Resolution
Transformative Justice: A strategy to respond to harm/conflict without causing further harm and uses harm reduction to lessen the violence. This approach recognizes that oppression is at the root of all harm. Maintain no cop zones in your neighborhood and with your neighbors
Conflict resolution: Are you able to resolve an argument between neighbors without calling the cops? Conflict resolution is important because cops are usually called to de-escalate conflict or in some cases to weaponize violence against one another.
Try to de-escalate situations without involving the police especially if you know them
Some de-escalation tactics are simply communication, listening and staying calm in active situations.
Develop a community code to follow
Example from the Black Panther Party: No party member will commit any crimes against other party members or black people at all, and cannot steal or take from the people, not even a needle or a piece of thread.
Train in first aid, weapons safety, & self defense
Gunshot/stab wounds, asthma attacks and overdoses are situations we need to be prepared for.
Identify community members who can assist in certain situations such as medical professionals or mental health specialists
In order to properly defend yourself you need to be trained on how to properly carry a weapon.
Our last resort is violence, only when we need to defend ourselves.