Respect to @RepTimWalz & @RHamilton542 for attending & participating in the #Worthington Public Forum on policing #mnleg pic.twitter.com/kfu5oYxhQ2
— Dale Moerke (@demoerke) July 10, 2017
In the Worthington Globe, Karl Evers-Hillstrom reports in Forum on policing maintains emotional, but respectful tone:
Around 275 people showed up to St. Mary’s Church on a hot Sunday afternoon to a forum that focused on policing in Worthington, specifically in regard to racial profiling and excessive force.
A panel consisting of Worthington Mayor Mike Kuhle, Worthington Police Chief Troy Appel, Sergeant Brett Wiltrout, U.S. Rep. Tim Walz and District 22B Rep. Rod Hamilton listened to passionate testimonies from Worthington residents, and later responded with their own comments.
Rev. Jim Callahan opened the forum by saying participants would “challenge each other in a calm and respectful way as we explore the issues of policing in the city of Worthington.”
And that’s exactly what happened. The forum started with emotional but civil testimonies from residents about their experiences with Worthington police.
Comments about negative experiences were prefaced by assurances that WPD has done good for the community, and has many good officers. Still, many residents said racial profiling and excessive force were issues that needed to be addressed. . . .
Around half-a-dozen commenters said they were scared for young minorities driving around the city after seeing the June dashcam video of an officer beating Laotian Worthington resident Anthony Promvongsa. . . .
Worthington is among Minnesota's most diverse communities.
Just over a year ago, Star Tribune staff writer David Peterson wrote in Minnesota's diversity brings diversity across the state, new estimates show:
The biggest shift from 2010 to 2015 took place in Nobles County, in the state’s southwest corner, where Worthington is the county seat. Minorities in Nobles rose by a whopping 6 percentage points, far higher than in any other county. Strong in Latinos, Nobles dropped from 67 to 61 percent white.
The Globe reports that community members and political leaders were positive about the forum:
Appel encouraged concerned citizens to come to a public forum from 4 to 6 p.m. next Sunday at Chautauqua Park intended to help educate citizens on policing procedure, including how to behave during a traffic stop.
Walz applauded comments from community members, and encouraged Worthington residents to continue the open dialogue with an understanding that minority communities feeling afraid of police does not mean they don’t appreciate or respect the work that police do.
“If we’re truly toward that more perfect union, we’ve got to be welcome to bare our souls on this, not go for the easy fix, not look for a bumper sticker or sign we can hand around, but to look our neighbor in the eye, and say, ‘I feel your pain,’” Walz said.
Hamilton, R-Mountain Lake, also focused on a positive message.
“All too often, we fear what we don’t take the time to understand, whether it’s the color or our skin, the languages we speak, the way we dress, the way we choose to worship,” Hamilton said. “If we simply take the time to get to know each other, we will find beauty all around us.”
After the meeting, the feeling from organizers was the event was not only a success, but the first of many to come, in a rejuvenated effort to improve communication between the police and the city’s many diverse communities.
Photo: Tweet by labor organizer Dale Moerke of Luverne, MN
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