Illinois gets it: Schools need therapists, not more armed guards
Some Illinois lawmakers are proposing that schools receive extra funding to replace law enforcement in schools with mental health services — a direct rebuke to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, President Donald Trump and other Republican lawmakers who believe arming teachers and adding police in schools is the answer to making schools safer. "His plan, which is backed by 16 other Democrats in the House, would allow schools to apply to an optional grant if they promise to reallocate funding for school-based law enforcement to mental health services, including social workers or other practices 'designed to promote school safety and healthy environments,'" the AP reported. At least one third of those involve putting armed officers in schools, under the name "school resource officers." "This increased presence of law enforcement in schools does not necessarily enhance school safety," Michelle Mbekeani-Wiley from the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law told the AP. Deputy Kip Heinle, former president of the Illinois School Resource Officers Association, told AP that the officers are "the best line of defense to keep students safe in school."
School resource officers often criminalize Black and brown children, experts say.
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