The Ann Arbor City Council in Michigan has unanimously voted to remove more than 600 neighborhood crime watch signs by July 15, citing concerns in its resolution that the program promotes “race-based hyper-vigilance and suspicion,” particularly toward Black, Brown, and other marginalized residents and visitors. City officials say the watch program is already defunct and that taking down the signs is intended to support a more welcoming and inclusive environment amid mixed crime trends in Ann Arbor.
In a 10-0 vote earlier this week, the all-Democrat Ann Arbor City Council directed city staff to begin removing all neighborhood crime watch signs across the city by July 15. According to reporting by the Daily Wire, the council resolution calls for the removal of more than 600 such signs and argues that the program promotes "race-based hyper-vigilance and suspicion particularly toward Black, Brown, and other marginalized residents and visitors."
The resolution, as quoted in the Daily Wire article, says the neighborhood watch programs were often rooted in assumptions about who did and did not "belong" in a neighborhood. It states that this dynamic encouraged informal surveillance practices that disproportionately targeted people of color and contributed to patterns of exclusion under the guise of public safety.
Councilwoman Jen Eyer described the neighborhood watch signs as remnants of a past era. "The neighborhood watch signs that still stand across Ann Arbor really come from a different era," she said, adding that they have become "furniture" in the urban landscape that many residents no longer consciously notice. Eyer also argued that "evidence suggests that signs and practices rooted in constant vigilance can actually reinforce fear and erode neighborly trust, promoting a myth of safety rather than safety itself," according to the Daily Wire’s account of the council discussion.
Councilwoman Cynthia Harrison criticized what she called the broader "culture" of neighborhood watch programs and drew a connection to the 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin in Florida. Martin, a Black teenager, was shot and killed by George Zimmerman, a volunteer with his neighborhood watch program, after Martin was perceived as suspicious while walking through a residential community. Zimmerman was later acquitted by a Florida jury on all charges, including second-degree murder and manslaughter. Harrison argued that Martin’s death illustrated how a focus on surveillance, rather than relationship-building, can have deadly consequences and, according to the Daily Wire’s summary, said that neighborhood watch programs were built on an old idea that "heterogeneous neighborhoods create danger," contrasting that view with Ann Arbor’s stated belief that diversity is a source of strength.
City officials noted that Ann Arbor’s neighborhood watch programs are already inactive, and the council characterized the removal of the 600-plus signs as a logical next step consistent with its goals of inclusion. The Daily Wire, citing local reporting, also noted that while the city’s overall crime rate has declined in 2025 compared to 2024, downtown Ann Arbor has seen a 9% increase in total crime and an 11% rise in violent crime so far this year.
Ann Arbor, home to the University of Michigan and widely regarded as one of the most liberal communities in Michigan, has previously come under scrutiny from the Trump administration over immigration enforcement. The Daily Wire article reports that federal officials accused Ann Arbor authorities of obstructing immigration operations and that city leaders rejected attempts to label Ann Arbor a "sanctuary city." Mayor Pro Tem Travis Radina said earlier this year, "While Ann Arbor is not a sanctuary city, we are proud to be an inclusive and welcoming city. We know diversity is a strength and believe in protecting the constitutionally granted rights of all our residents."
The Daily Wire further notes that Washtenaw County, which includes Ann Arbor, elected a new sheriff last year, Alyshia Dyer, a Democrat who has pledged to focus part of her agenda on "environmental justice." In a separate Daily Wire interview earlier in the year, Dyer discussed plans to create an "Environmental Crimes Unit" to investigate issues such as air pollution, water contamination, and hazardous waste management, saying there is "no reason" the sheriff’s office cannot be a stronger champion on environmental issues.
