ROCHESTER, Minn. - Rochester city leaders are having a public conversation on Thursday with local organizations to talk about the changes that will be coming to the Rochester Police Department. The virtual town hall is called, "Where do we go from here: Proposed Actions for Justice in our Community."
One of those organizations participating is the NAACP. The president, W.C. Jordan, said the community is looking for justice. People from all walks of life are taking to the streets to advocate for black men being killed in the hands of white police officers. He said they have to know how laws work first.
"Knowledge is power. You cannot make a really intelligent decision on how we move forward unless you know all the facts." Last week, Mayor Norton signed a national pledge that helps hold police departments accountable. They're beginning to review three RPD policies this month.
The goal of this town hall is to give people a better understanding of what changes will take place regarding policing. Jordan said unfortunately, this isn't their first rodeo, so that's how he knows something needs to change. "We have Jamar Clark in the cities, we have Philando Castile. We supposedly made changes after those killings and it's still happening," Jordan explained. "So we know that whatever we did in the past wasn't the solution. We have to search for better solutions."
The virtual town hall is open to everyone in the community. Jordan encourages you to participate and ask the questions you're wanting answers to. The meeting will be held on Zoom and live streamed on Facebook starting at 6 p.m. For more information, you can click here.
