"Taking Away the Occasion for Violence": The Quaker Peace Testimony and Law Enforcement in the Justice and Policy Studies Department at Guilford College

Abstract


 
 
 The mid-sized southern city of Greensboro, North Carolina has not been spared from the crisis in policing gripping the United States. The city has a history of racial conflict and violence involving the police, most notably the 1979 Massacre where five anti-Klan protestors were killed by Neo-Nazi and Klan members. It is also the site of renowned movements for social justice; in 1961, four North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University freshmen sparked the Sit-In movement, and in 2005, the first Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the United States, which addressed the Massacre, took place in Greensboro. Through partnerships with activists, police, and other community members, the Justice and Policy Studies Department (JPS) at Guilford College works to strengthen police-community relations in Greensboro. The Quaker peace testimony, which calls for “taking away the occasion for violence,” inspires and guides these efforts. This article explores the ways that JPS and its community partners prepare students to take away the occasion for violence in policing and the criminal justice system. Guilford’s president, two JPS professors, a Deputy Chief of the Greensboro Police Department and a community organizer with the Beloved Community Center share their insights regarding this critical topic.