Daniel Gascón, a graduate of Cal State San Bernardino, makes a virtual return appearance at his alma mater as part of the ongoing series, Conversations on Race and Policing.

His presentation, his third in the series, will take place at noon Monday, March 25, on Zoom. The program, free and open to the public, can be accessed from a PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android at https://tinyurl.com/csusb-race-policing.

Gascón, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, recently published “The Hispanic Outreach: Network Analysis of a Community-Based Policing Program in South Los Angeles,” in Critical Sociology. The article examined “the nature, movement, and controversies of the information flowing through a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) community-based program in a predominantly Latino migrant neighborhood of South Los Angeles known as ‘the Hispanic Outreach.’”

He co-authored, with Aaron Roussell, the book, “The Limits of Community Policing: Civilian Power and Police Accountability in Black and Brown Los Angeles,” the topic of his August 2020 talk. The book focused on the Los Angeles Police Department’s community policing initiatives stemming from the 1992 riots after the acquittal of LA Police Department officers in the beating of Rodney King. He also was a participant in a July 2020 panel that examined policing, racial justice and potential actions to promote greater equity in the local community.

Gascón received his MA and BA in criminal justice at CSUSB and earned his Ph.D. in criminology, law and society at UC Irvine.

The Conversations on Race and Policing program began after the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, and its aftermath. Floyd, a Black man, was killed by a white Minneapolis police officer, triggering extensive protests, demands for systemic reform in policing, and profound dialogues on race and racism. This also led to the inception of Cal State San Bernardino’s Conversations on Race and Policing, abbreviated as CoRP.

In subsequent court cases, three other former Minneapolis police officers implicated in Floyd’s death were given prison sentences.

The series has featured scholars, journalists, law enforcement officers, lawyers, activists, artists, educators, administrators and others from throughout the nation who shared their experience and expertise on issues related to race and policing.

One hundred forums have taken place since, and video recordings of the sessions are posted online on the Conversations on Race and Policing Lecture Series Archive. 

Upcoming programs, which will all take place at noon on Zoom, include:

The series is organized by Matt Patino (CSUSB alumnus and adjunct faculty member at Crafton Hills College); CSUSB faculty members Mary Texeira (sociology) and Jeremy Murray (history); Robie Madrigal, public affairs/communication specialist for the CSUSB John M. Pfau Library; Michael German, fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice; and community member Stan Futch, president of the Westside Action Group.

For more information, contact Madrigal at rmadriga@csusb.edu or Murray at jmurray@csusb.edu.

Also visit the Conversations on Race and Policing webpage.