Renita Francois joins Jamie Rubin to discuss how the Mamdani administration can move beyond traditional policing by helping residents to define — and co-produce — their own safety.
In the transition to a new city administration, the spotlight often falls on big promises — from making buses free to creating a brand-new Department of Community Safety. But as New York looks to innovate, it doesn't have to start from scratch. The building blocks for a more holistic, resident-driven approach to public safety already exist in the city's recent history.
On this episode of After Hours, Jamie Rubin sits down with two architects of that history: Elizabeth Glazer, former head of the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, and Renita Francois, former executive director of the Mayor’s Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety (MAP).
Together, they dive into the legacy of Neighborhood Stat — a model that treated safety not just as a matter for the police, but as a joint project involving sanitation, parks, and, most importantly, the residents themselves. From clearing needles in the South Bronx to build "serenity gardens" to using asset forfeiture for community reinvestment, Francois and Glazer argue that true safety is found in the details of the physical environment and the strength of local trust.
As the Mamdani administration begins its work, Glazer and Francois offer a roadmap for "putting the public back in public safety" and a cautionary tale about why the data that drives these decisions must never be allowed to go dormant.
You can listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.