Today, multiple organizations and advocates convened a press conference and rally on the steps of City Hall ahead of a New York City Council oversight hearing on the New York City Police Department’s (NYPD) use of stop-and-frisk policing.

Advocates called on the City Council to pass Intro 798, legislation that would abolish the NYPD’s Criminal Group Database, otherwise known as the “gang” database. The database has long been used by NYPD officers to label thousands of Black and Latino New Yorkers as “members” or “associates” of gangs based on imprecise criteria, resulting in community members enduring numerous harms from the criminal legal system process. The policing and surveillance arising out of the gang database are reminiscent of the NYPD’s racially discriminatory stop-and-frisk practices.

“The NYPD’s gang database is a dangerous and racist tool that disproportionately targets young people of color with little to no evidence of criminal involvement,” reads a statement from Legal Aid. “For too long, this database has fueled over-policing in communities that are already overburdened. The City Council must finally act to abolish this harmful policing practice by passing Intro 798. It’s time to shift from punishment to prevention and invest in real safety through community-led solutions, not harmful databases that perpetuate the carceral system.”