Santa Cruz police working to implement policy changes after nationwide protests
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KION) Santa Cruz police leaders are trying to find solutions to the issues many around the country, including here locally, are protesting over.
On Thursday, the city's police chief met with black leaders from the city and greater county to discuss ways they can improve relations and prevent tragedies from happening.
"We talked about the choke hold being eradicated. That's one major one," said Joy Flynn, a concerned citizen involved in the talks.
"I want to hear from them what policies, what training, what relationships could be built, what we can do to move forward with the black community in order to reduce the potential for violence," said Chief Andy Mills, of the Santa Cruz Police Department.
The issues remain clear: reducing violence against people of color by police and ways to improve communication and relationships between the two groups. Church and community leaders, protest organizers and elected officials all came together.
"That's exactly what this movement is about. It's about the fact that when black people try to stand up, they're usually told to be quiet," said Justin Cummings, the Santa Cruz mayor.
Mills says the protests in the city have been overall peaceful apart from the "anarchists" who graffitied the station the night before. He says the history of policing in this country, particularly concerning people of color, has not been good.
"All the way from the slave trading days when police were used to track people down to when people came over the bridge in Selma, Alabama, in the 60s and there were cops that greeted them with batons and with water hoses," said Mills.
He says his department is prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure they are reducing the potential for conflict.
"We have not listened to what the community is telling us, so this is our opportunity to really sit down, listen, hone in to find out what steps we can make to really improve these relationships," said Mills.
"If people think they're going to come into this city and loot or hurt other people or do acts of violence, they got another thing coming," said Mills.
