Cross-Posted from the Washington Informer Written by William J. Ford
Kwasi Seitu called the policing efforts of D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier bogus and racist.
Lezora Arter said families need to learn to monitor themselves, but also establish a positive relationship with police officers.
Both gave passionate pleas during a town hall meeting Tuesday night at Allen Chapel AME Church in Southeast on ways to improve policing, which at times grew contentious as the city grapples with a surge in violent crime.
At the forum, which drew nearly 100 people, some residents expressed frustration about Mayor Muriel Bowser’s plan to spend $15 million in response to a recent spate of homicides, particularly her goal to hire more police.
“We think this is completely the wrong thing to do. We want to see a surge of community, not police,” said local activist Eugene Puryear. “People need jobs. They need housing. They need mental health care. They need those things right now.”
The situation is a conundrum for the mayor as she deals with opposition from residents clamoring for her to stem the violence and those decrying the increasing police presence, all while the city homicide rate rises. As of Tuesday, there have been 109 homicides in 2015 — up from 74 at this time last year.
From Monday night through early Tuesday morning alone, eight people were shot in three separate incidents in the District, including Jarrell Hall, 28, who died from gunshot wounds inside a residence on Forrester Street SW.
Bowser posted a note Tuesday morning on Twitter that the police department has seized more than 1,100 illegal guns so far this year.
At Tuesday night’s forum, Mena Young-Harris of Temple Hills, Maryland, who attends Allen Chapel and has three grandchildren living in Southeast, agreed that more social services are needed, but not necessarily at the expense of police resources.
“Not all police are bad,” said Young-Harris, whose husband retired from the District’s police force. “My grandchildren will walk up to a police officer and say ‘hi.’ That’s what we are teaching them, to not be afraid of a police officer.”
But Seema Sadanandan, criminal justice director for the city’s American Civil Liberties Union chapter and one of the forum’s hosts, said the District’s disproportionate arrest rate is cause for concern.
“Despite dramatic changes in the African-American population here in D.C., more than 92 percent of [the city’s jail population] is African-American,” she said. “We have not moved … any major police reform in the District.”
Sadanandan cited a 2013 ACLU study of marijuana-related arrests in D.C., which the organization says highlights the racial disparity in the city.
According to the report, blacks were eight times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession. In neighboring Prince George’s County, blacks were twice as likely arrested for the same offense.
Although slightly more than half of the city’s residents are black, 91 percent of all marijuana-related arrests were of blacks.
In terms of money, the District spent nearly $18 million to enforce marijuana possession laws, more than $6 million in judicial and legal costs and $2 million to incarcerate people convicted of marijuana-related violations — money that could otherwise be used for public health and safety, drug treatment programs and police-community relations, the report stated.
But at-large Councilwoman Elissa Silverman said the city can and should spend money on both policing and resources for residents.
“We should be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. I don’t think it is an either/or proposition. We should have our uniformed officers on the street,” she said after the forum. “We do spend a fair amount of money on things like workforce development. I think the resources are there.”
Three more discussions on policing will take place this month in the District: “Black Women and Girls” from 6-9 p.m. Thursday at Florida Avenue Baptist, 623 Florida Ave. NW; “South Asian Arab and Muslim Forum” at Impact Hub, 419 7th St. NW, at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 15; and a town hall forum at First Baptist Church, 712 Randolph St. NW, at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 17.
Monica Hopkins-Maxwell, executive director of ACLU’s D.C. chapter, said more forums will be scheduled later this year.
“Our goal is to be present in all eight wards,” she said.
