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Call and Response
Hello All,
I am a 20 year old young citizen of Toledo, Ohio. I am
studying Business Management at the University of Toledo. I
live in a community that is less than a mile away from the
in progressively developing downtown and a mile from the
educational anchor institution to which I attend. Our
community is one that is plagued with governmental financial
disinvestment but more importantly a community that suffers
not in silence but through a lack of local support and
understanding (cultural competence).
I am writing due to the increased police presence within
our community of Junction and Dorr. I am thankful to have
officers that want to protect and serve however I don't
understand why the officers that patrol our community don't
know us or attempt to build relationships with us (community
members who live in the area). On Friday, April 6, 2018 when
returning home after work I was stopped in my driveway. The
officer approached my car and informed me that I had driven
left-to-center on Junction and ask for my ID. This time
there was another car of police officers that joined him
they asked the officer "if he was good". I provided my id
to the officer and wondered why the officer was not concern
about the increase activity of illegal drugs being sold in
our community. This is not the first time this has happen in
the past four months. My brother was stopped while pulling
into our driveway after returning from work in January and
in February one of our community members was stopped on
Indiana and told that the officers could not read the
license plate and asked if anyone in the car had a warrant.
This was after a monthly community meeting and Restorative
Justice class for youth held at the Frederick Douglass
Center.
I placed a call to our Chief Kral because I believe he cares
for our community but understanding that he can't answer all
calls therefore I am reaching our via email as it is vitally
important to improve community and police interaction during
a time where most young African-American communities and
youth fear our public service Officers. I asked my mother to
send this email in order to keep her informed as the
Junction Coalition, Community lead (Alicia Smith) but I
wanted to reach out as a former employee of the City of
Toledo and strong supporter of the Toledo Police and the
former Summer Funfest Coordinator and Brains and Bodies.
If at all possible I would like to work with our community
officers and a team of young men in our community to ensure
that there isn't lack of knowledge regarding who we are and
how we live and survive in our communities. There needs to
be more conversations that help to protect communities from
racism, disinvestment and fear. Thank you, for your
commitment to excellence and protecting our families from
harm. Please feel free to reach to to me via cell, which is
provided below. I have asked my mother to provide this email
to any and all leaders that are willing to support the
growth and well being of our community. As a voter and law
abiding citizen, I only want what is humane and fair for ALL
of us.
Sincerely,
Joseph Smith
Joe,
Thank you for taking the time to draft your email. Regarding
your comments about officers knowing the community they
police, I agree wholeheartedly. This is referred to as “Beat
Integrity” and it is a concept I am committed to as Chief of
Police. Thanks to Mayor Kapszukiewicz’s commitment to hire
forty new officers a year I will now be able to keep
officers assigned to a specific area much easier than it is
now. Once this occurs, neighborhood residents will see the
same officer’s faces at the same time in the same locations.
As for you, and your brother, being pulled over, clearly I
wasn’t there, and can look into it further if you feel the
stop was inappropriate. You mentioned you wondered why the
officers were not more concerned about the increase in
illegal drugs being sold in your neighborhood. I assure you
they are. Drug trafficking and reducing shooting incidents
are one of our main focuses to help keep all Toledoans safe.
Traffic enforcement is a strategy used when addressing these
issues.
I have an incredibly busy week and will be off on vacation
next week. But, I would like to sit down with you once I
return. As you know, I am very interested in, and encourage
constantly, collaborations between TPD and the community we
serve. If I can be a conduit to conversations between our
Operations Division, Community Services Section officers,
and the community I would jump at the opportunity. I truly
value your support to TPD and the Brains and Body Program. I
am confident we can improve the relationships we all so
badly want.
Again, thanks for reaching out and I’ll be in touch soon.
Chief Kral |
