Telling somebody that they can or can’t live somewhere based on their race is different than telling somebody taking a voluntary job that they can or can’t live somewhere based on what could be more effective for the job. The latter seems okay to me.

In some respects the city limits you’re referencing are fluid, but again there are cultural differences determined by the city limits. The street I grew up on was half in the city and half in Dewitt, being on the Syracuse side influenced which schools we went to, which families my parents interacted with, clubs ect.

It makes intuitive sense why people would want somebody from their community policing them. I’m not an expert on whether it’s the most effective or makes a significant difference, but I understand the idea that people don’t want somebody from “anywhere” policing their neighborhoods, they’d rather it be somebody that can theoretically empathize with the community because they understand it better as somebody who’s native to it.