Hello all! 2021 is fast approaching and we would love for you to help us hit the ground running. Enjoy your years end and if you have any down time to think on this, we would love your comments!
If you have attended any of our Racial Justice Committee meetings in the second half of 2020, you know that one of their main initiatives is increased dialogue with our local police station, the Wilshire Station.
Our Racial Justice Co-Chairs will be meeting with the commander of the Wilshire Station regarding questions we would like answered, ideas of what our community would like to see done differently, and how we want the LAPD to better police our community. We plan on having frequent meetings with the Captain to develop a good relationship and bring some real change into our community. We would like your input about the above. What questions do you have, what direction do you want things to go into and why? What do you want the LAPD to understand that you currently find lacking and how do you want to see us push?
Back in September, the MINC Racial Justice committee formulated some questions for the Community-Police Advisory Board (CPAB). Our October Agenda and Minutes both cover the responses we received:
Since then, we have discussed follow up questions. The Captain noted that addressing these questions would perhaps take more time than a CPAB meeting would allow, and we will be meeting with her separately for a time to discuss how MINC and CPAB should be addressing these issues and moving forward.
Current discussion topics:
Introduction of the new CPAB PROCEDURAL JUSTICE & EQUITY SUB-COMMITTEE: Lead Thao Tran is actively looking for members and engagement but is in early planning stages. She is on the MidCity West Neighborhood council and is bringing her experience there to pressure city hall for change within LAPD.
Limitations and disappointment in CPAB: Captain Paulson has acknowledged that the current state of CPAB is not functioning in an 'advisory' capacity as it was intended upon its creation. It has become more of a booster club and place for stakeholders to complain about their issues vs community concerns.
Expanding dialogues with MINC/RJC and Captain Paulson: We invited Captain Paulson to join our Stakeholder Meetings on a quarterly basis to get to know us and vice versa and she was receptive. She also seemed, at the last CPAB meeting, to be in agreement that some of the Defund campaign proposals to take things off the plate of police do seem inappropriate for law enforcement.
Send us your thoughts!