As cities have searched for non-police options for crisis response, many have arrived in an unlikely place: Eugene, Oregon.

In this episode of This Changes Everything’s focus on efforts to defunding the police, host Sara Bernard heads to Eugene for a virtual ride along with CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets), an inventive and unique effort to respond to crisis calls with social workers instead of police. 

In the calls to defund police and invest in alternatives, CAHOOTS has become the model. We get the real story about how it works and what problems it faces and consider the question: Is the program scalable from a small city like Eugene to a bigger metropolis like Seattle?

This six-part podcast, produced by Bernard and reported by David Kroman, takes a close look at challenges of policing today and whether it’s possible to downsize the police force and create a new public safety regime that is more equitable and safe.

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Credits

Host, producer: Sara Bernard

Reporter: David Kroman

Story editor: Donna Gordon Blankinship

Executive producer: Mark Baumgarten

Read the full transcript here.