Speakers at Forum Overwhelmingly Oppose Metal Detectors in Schools in New Britain

While the New Britain school district said most respondents to its recently completed survey supported metal detectors in schools, many speakers at the forum the school system called on the topic strongly opposed having metal detectors.

The Consolidated School System of New Britain said that 87% of survey respondents supported metal detectors in the city’s high schools, 84% supported having them in middle schools and 74% supported having them in elementary schools.

But one speaker questioned, in a school district with nearly 12,000 students, how representative a survey with 936 responses is.

Speaker after speaker at the forum Tuesday evening at New Britain High School expressed concern about the negative effect of having metal detectors on students, making students feel less safe. One speaker said they could make the city’s schools feel, “more like prison than education.”

Speakers expressed strong concern that metal detectors would disproportionately harm students of color, with many speakers concerned about having more of a “school to prison” pipeline.

Many speakers said metal detectors would make reinforce negative stereotypes about New Britain kids and about the New Britain community.

Speakers repeatedly cited a lack of data supporting the idea that metal detector would work to make schools safer, with some saying that metal detectors are ineffective. Other speakers said that kids’ bigger concern about safety were fistfight-type confrontations.

A number of speakers said that installing metal detectors would provide a false sense of security.

Rather than that false sense of security created by the costly installation of metal detectors and the staffing needed to operate them, a number of speakers said, money should be made available for a number of services for students. Speakers advocated for having more teachers, counselors and school safety staff.

Speakers expressed concern about crowded school hallways with far to little adult supervision, because of lack of staffing.

One speaker asked why the district should, “spend thousands of dollars on something treats kids like potential threats,” rather than comprehensive solutions for kids.

In closing the forum, Superintendent Tony Gasper noted that many of the staffing and service needs advocated by speakers are budgetary considerations. He encouraged members of the community to attend the Board of Education and City Council meetings when budgets are being discussed.