What is #WhyIDidntCall?

#WhyIDidntCall is a comprehensive campaign led by Black Phoenix Organizing Collective (BPOC), and with the inspiration from the Black Youth Project’s (BYP) 100’s She Safe, We Safe movement, to engage and build a community around a shared vision of safety and abolition. Utilizing our value of healing trauma, BPOC believes that policing does not prevent harm, it initiates, continues and furthers harm and it is our duty as a community to build better practices safety within our neighborhoods and city.

#WhyIDidntCall will conduct a combination of short surveys and longer in-depth interviews throughout Phoenix communities to help build a shared understanding of why Black community members (while centering womxn, LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities) do not feel safe calling law enforcement. We will conduct short interviews with survivors of harm to make sure our vision of safety centers those directly impacted, we will create a comprehensive report of the data collected, and we will provide political education regarding policing, safety, and community resources to the community.

Goals of #WhyIDidntCall

  1. Hear from those who are impacted by harm and listen to their wants and needs 

  2. Conduct surveys and interviews of Black community members in Phoenix to gauge how comfortable they feeling requesting assistance from law enforcement 

  3. Analyze the data collected 

  4. Produce a report of the findings from the surveys and interviews. This report will be a mixture of both quantitative (hard data information from the surveys) and qualitative (quotes and narratives from interviews) to provide a comprehensive analysis of our findings. 

  5. Present this data to the community in an accessible and inclusive way 

  6. Redefine what public safety means for Black people in Phoenix #WeKeepUsSafe

  7. Educate the community about this history and present-day status of policing, trauma, community safety, and community resources. 

  8. Engage with BPOC’s value of healing trauma 

  9. To center those who are most impacted by police violence, neglect, and terror BPOC’s work 

  10. Create a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative report to enforce our campaigning around the 2021 city budget and prevent further funds going towards Phoenix PD and to be reallocated into community health and safety,  housing, education, and other community-run programs

Frequently Asked Questions

  • QUESTION: WHAT IS THE CAMPAIGN GOING TO DO?

ANSWER:  #WhyIDidntCall will conduct a combination of short surveys and longer in-depth interviews throughout Phoenix communities to help build a shared understanding of why Black community members (while centering womxn, LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities) do not feel safe calling law enforcement. We also want to explore with folks wha[t community safety could look like if it was defined by the community.

  • Q: HOW IS #WHYIDIDN’TCALL GOING TO DO THAT? 

A: We will conduct short interviews with survivors of harm to make sure our vision of safety centers those who are directly impacted, we will create a comprehensive report of the data collected, and we will provide political education regarding policing, safety, and community resources to the community.

  • Q: HOW DO I CONTACT #WHYIDIDN’TCALL? HOW DO I GET INVOLVED?

A: Our primary form of communication to collect surveys and interviews for this campaign is our e-mail; widc@blackphxoc.org

If you want to do our short survey, please email us (widc@blackphxoc.org)  or reach out to us on social media so we can send it to you. 

If you want to participate in a short 30-minute interview, please include contact information (name, pronouns, email or phone number, social media, if applicable)

  • Q : I’M UNSURE IF I WANT TO DO AN INTERVIEW… BUT I DO WANT TO TALK TO SOMEONE. 

A: That’s okay too! Everyone’s healing journey and needs are unique. If you would like to talk to someone or would like resources, feel free to reach out to us as well. 

  • Q: WHERE CAN I FIND THE SURVEY?

A: Email us or message us on social media and we can send you the survey to fill out, or set up a time to do an interview with you. 

  • Q: WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO US?

A:We are Black folks in Phoenix who have seen and experienced harm in countless ways and it is time for us to address these harms, either perpetrated by the state or by other community members. We know there is a better way to address community safety and harm prevention. We know it is not through policing, but through engagement with our neighbors, community, and each other.

  • Q: WHYARE Y’ALL FOCUSING ON WOMXN, LGBTG+, AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

A: Good question! Womxn is an inclusive term that centers Transgender women in our language and in our community. We really wanted to focus on Black womxn, LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities as these groups are often the most impacted by harm, and the least likely to have access to resources. If we’re going to work towards keeping our communities safe, we have to start by protecting and listening to these groups. We are still interested in hearing from all Black people in our Phoenix community though.