More police requested as violence increases in liberal state schools.

According to recent data, violence in Los Angeles schools has nearly doubled since police were removed from school campuses following the George Floyd riots in 2020. A petition organized by Maria Luisa Palma, a member of the Parents Advisory Committee in Los Angeles, has garnered over 2,500 signatures calling for the return of police officers on school campuses. The petition aims to address the increase in violent incidents from 2,315 in the 2018-2019 school year to 4,569 in 2022-2023.

In 2021, Students Deserve, a progressive student organization advocating for the removal of police in schools, successfully lobbied the LAUSD and the school board to divest funding from the Los Angeles School District Police. The group argued that the presence of police officers on campuses led to the criminalization of students, particularly those from Black and brown communities, creating a hostile learning environment.

Students Deserve urged schools to invest in alternative support services such as counselors, mental health professionals, and restorative justice programs. With the support of Black Lives Matter-Los Angeles and the California Teacher’s Association, the school district reallocated $25 million from school police to these alternative support services.

Despite opposition from Parents Advisory Committee members like Palma, the school board voted unanimously in February 2021 to remove officers stationed in schools. A resolution to reinstate police was rejected in September of the same year.

Palma and other frustrated parents and teachers have been demanding the return of police officers to schools to curb violence. They argue that the district’s decision to defund the police department was more of a political move than a financial necessity.

While the LAUSD school board is working on a new safety plan, it remains unclear whether this plan will include the reinstatement of police officers on school campuses.