WeCopwatch Mission
The primary goal of WeCopwatch is to watch the police, to educate and empower the public by informing people about Copwatch as a community defense tool, and to teach people about their rights in the event they are stopped by the police.
WeCopwatch supports community forms of justice, whether they be restorative or transformative, that do not involve the police or the criminal justice system. WeCopwatch does not work with the police or aide the police in their investigations. When Copwatching we do not film criminal activity, and we do not provide video or photos to the police.
WeCopwatch promotes the non-violent observation of the police.
WeCopwatch is against all forms of hate and bigotry.
Principles of Non Oppression
WeCopwatch is against all forms of oppression whether institutional or internalized.
We stand against white supremacy, racism, sexism, violence against women, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and any form of collectivized hatred or bigotry.
As a small collective, we realize that the only way to make police obsolete is to not perpetuate their behaviors, and to live in such a manner where people no longer rely on police.
As WeCopwatch we choose to deal with incidents or patterns exhibited by our members/allies/team in a manner that can help an individual understand how their mindset or actions hurt and impact others.
The goal is that in this process we can all learn from each other, build a stronger organization, and make the world a better place.
How We Conduct Ourselves in the Streets
WeCopwatch is dedicated to the nonviolent observation of the police.
We watch the police directly, and we use our presence as a de-escalating or mediating factor in interactions that are aggressive and hostile.
We know that how we conduct ourselves can have a negative or positive effect on both the person stopped and those who copwatch in the future.
From our body language to the way we interact with police stops, we seek to de-escalate aggressive interactions and to serve as a deterrent to police misconduct.
We understand the difficulty of having to watch constant disempowerment, and also understand we can only strive to be our best under conditions that are often unpredictable.
Therefore we are dedicated to the principles of Non Oppression and models of Copwatching that have worked best over the years. We will make mistakes, but we will always strive to do our best.