The Anti-Racist Community Network (ARCN) presents:

911, What’s Your Emergency: 
The Promise and Peril of Crisis Response

with author S. Rebecca Neusteter, Ph.D.

Wednesday, September 30, 2026; 7:00-8:30 p.m. Eastern

When you call 911, you expect the right help to arrive. Too often, it doesn't — not because the people who answer don't care, but because the system was never designed to send the right responder.

In "911, What's Your Emergency?," Rebecca Neusteter exposes the structural flaw at the heart of America's emergency response system: a default to sending armed police officers to calls that require medical care, mental health support, or social services instead. Drawing on years of original research and fieldwork across dozens of communities, Neusteter traces 911's roots in racial politics, centers the invisible workforce of call takers and dispatchers who carry the weight of every crisis, and charts a path forward — one where the right response actually matches the call.

The system can be fixed. This author and her book show how.

Meet our presenter:


S. Rebecca Neusteter, Ph.D., works to advance public health and safety. She currently serves as Executive Director of the University of Chicago Health Lab, focusing on improving health outcomes and equity. Rebecca has held roles with the Vera Institute of Justice, NYPD, Arnold Ventures, the Urban Institute, and NYC Office of Management and Budget. She serves on the Council on Criminal Justice, is a trustee of Youth Justice Network, and advises on emergency response. Rebecca holds a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice, an MS in Urban Policy Analysis and Management, and a BA in Sociology. She frequently informs research and practice on justice, health, and emergency response.

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About the Anti-Racist Community Network (ARCN)

We are building a pathway to the emerging anti-racist, multiracial society…

The ARCN is a multiracial, anti-racist online community working to achieve racial justice and end white supremacy through activism and organizing. Our members want to be actively networking against racism and white supremacy. Through education and activism, we are working together for real and lasting societal change.

The Anti-Racist Community Network is owned and operated by the Center for the Study of White American Culture, Inc. Founded in 1995, we are known in anti-racist circles. Our operating philosophy for ARCN is to create a big tent. If you are comfortable working under our explicit expectation that you support racial justice and building anti-racist multiracial community, then you are welcome and we invite you to come.

Member Policy

Black, Indigenous, and People of Color may join the ARCN with a complimentary equity membership.

White people who cannot afford the cost to join may apply for a scholarship. White people with the means to pay are asked to do so, and we also welcome People of Color who would like to support us in addition to your presence by enrolling in a paid membership plan.

The subscription plan with an annual plan is in place and you can sign up now.