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CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,1 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 1 | MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY- - JUNE 29, 2020- 5:30 P.M. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft convened the meeting at 5:30 p.m. and led the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL - Present: Councilmembers Daysog, Knox White, Oddie, Vella, and Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft - 5. [Note: The meeting was conducted via Zoom.] Absent: None. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS, NON-AGENDA (20-439) Paul Foreman, Alameda, stated the routine invoking of reducing public speaking time gives the public the impression that their thoughts are not valued; urged that the Mayor first ask if there is a motion to waive the time limits prior to just invoking the limit. REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS (20-440) Recommendation to Develop a Work Plan, including Community Dialogue, to Address the Following: 1. Unbundling Services Currently Delivered by the Police Department; 2. Systemic Racism; 3. a Review of Police Department Policies and Practices; 4. Police Department Accountability and Oversight; 5. a Review of Laws that Criminalize Survival; and 6. Other Matters which may be Pertinent, including Vacancies. The Assistant City Manager made a brief presentation. Councilmember Oddie inquired whether Council is looking at systemic racism as a broader societal, Citywide issue, and not focusing specifically on accusing the Police Department or Officers in the Department, of racism; stated that he just wants to be clear what Council is looking at. The Assistant City Manager responded that he has heard it to be a conversation about either organizationally or with the community; the particular component of the work program has not been directed towards the Police Department; it has been organizationally as the City of Alameda and as the broader community, which is why it is not embedded in the work plan tonight. Councilmember Oddie stated in the future, it would be helpful to bifurcate the topic on the agenda that addresses Police reform so there is not confusion that the focus is on one particular department. The Assistant City Manager stated the work plan could do that going forw… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,2 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 2 | Stated some suggestions to codify now, in terms of goals and measurements that everyone can agree on, include defining unacceptable behavior, making sure it stops and the requirement for practical transparency: Ben Calica, Alameda. Expressed concern about the serious problems of using Police to handle situations involving mentally ill citizens; urged unbundling of Police services to find a better solution: Lorin Salem, Alameda. Discussed the recent Council decision to remove the use of the Police Department's emergency response armored vehicle and Officers in school: Jason Horvath, Alameda Police Officer. Stated that she supports changing policing in the City, including defunding the Police Department by 50%, defunding the pay of Officers involved in detaining Mr. Watkins and investigation in the 2018 Gattenby incident: Jenice Anderson, Alameda. Stated that she hopes for progressive, solid actions as a result of the public comments; she is interested to know how many civil rights incidents have happened resulting in payouts to victims' families: Cheri Johansen, Alameda. Urged Council to proceed with three things in mind when creating the work plan: listen, act, and be accountable: Laura Cutrona, Alameda. Stated that he is glad Council is keeping the issue on the agenda and moving it forward; suggested any community participation be a robust process, inclusive and fact-based; urged against a Council-led committee: Jono Soglin, Alameda Stated policing as an institution was built on racist ideals and principles; she does not believe Councilmember Oddie's recommendation regarding training is a solution; urged unbundling of Police services: Alexa Arocha, Alameda. Urged Council to use the many resources available in the community when developing the work plan; reminded Council of important youth demands: Lean DeLeon, Alameda. Requested to be placed at the end of the speaker line so that Black and Brown speakers can be centered: Seth Marbin, Alameda Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft received consensus from the Council to rearrange th… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,3 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 3 | accountability of elected and public officials; an independent oversight committee should be formed, but not without first reallocating Alameda Police Department (APD) funds to community support programs and services or enacting an immediate 50% reduction in the APD budget: Amos White, Alameda American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) People Power. Stated that he experienced Police injustice in Alameda at a young age; suggested the framework for the process should be truth and reconciliation; urged the Council and the City to engage people who have been targeted to be able to come forward to speak their truths; until that happens, there can be no justice: Rasheed Shabazz, Alameda. Stated that he encourages the City Manager and Council to consider a change of leadership in the Police Department; he is looking forward to the independent review of the May 23rd incident: Walter Yonn, Alameda. Stated the Council should be better educated to truly represent the community's interest; there is an urgency to deal with the issues and a work plan must be community-led to be worthwhile: Thomas Mariadason, Alameda. Expressed appreciation for the Council's continued attention to all the Police issues; suggested looking at the Police union agreement: Cheryl Taylor, Alameda Stated Officer Horvath's comments were disparaging to some speakers; needing Police in schools because of crime and an armored vehicle because there are guns are faulty arguments; urged community members to pay close attention to which side Councilmembers are taking so they can elect officials that represent the people: James Bergquist, Alameda. Stated systemic racism is about unequal outcomes; the school-to-prison pipeline creates psychological and physical risks to students of Color; he agrees with defunding the Police by 50%; training has negative consequences for People of Color; expressed support for community-led organizations separate from Council: Wesley Swedlow, Alameda. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft inquired the status of School Resource Officers (SROs) in Alamed… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,17 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 17 | community-led and that Council should not be a part of it; Councilmembers sitting in on a task force takes it in a different direction; the preferable way is for members of the community to meet with staff; there are some concerns with Brown Act issues that come into play when Councilmembers sit on subcommittees; she is happy to work with another Councilmember to work with staff on how to move forward; she would like to give staff direction and come out with a work plan and timeline; it would be helpful to have a Council subcommittee; she would be happy to work with Councilmember Vella on a subcommittee, subject to the approval of her colleagues. Vice Mayor Knox White stated he would absolutely support a collaboration with Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft and Councilmember Vella; he is less interested in task forces; he prefers a steering committee, which does not make the decisions, but develops the process and figures out ways to bring in the community; he hopes to move forward tonight with the subcommittee as well as have a solid plan to have things come back; he would like a subcommittee that is actually an ex-officio, non-voting committee that comes back with a proposed process and goals and objectives by the end of month. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft concurred with Vice Mayor Knox White; stated that she would like the decision for a proposal and other considerations to be brought back to the Council through the subcommittee; she does not want to take an inordinate amount of time, just enough time to think it through well; Council also has to consider meetings will all have to take place virtually during this time of COVID. Councilmember Oddie stated Council had an ad hoc committee for the America's Cup that held public meetings; he likes the idea of Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft and Councilmember Vella working together; guiding principles going forward can include basic categories and goals, geographic diversity, gender diversity, members of the Black community, community interest groups, business high impact, and centering Black and yout… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,18 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 18 | realistic. Councilmember Daysog stated that he thinks the issue of unbundling Police services might require a separate community input process; one of the big reasons why Council is here is because the community was concerned about the way in which Mali Watkins was treated; the CAHOOTS program is a touchy-feely program that people are attracted to. Special Meeting Alameda City Council 18 June 29, 2020 | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,19 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 19 | Vice Mayor Knox White stated he is not ready to move forward with any specifics tonight; he is not going to be able to support having a subcommittee come up with a process tonight that does not have dates or cannot come back with finalized amended goals and objectives by the end of the month; he cannot support the direction if there are no milestones; Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft's proposed subcommittee working with staff will slow things down; the community expects and deserves some action so they are not waiting another month; if Council is going to move forward with some model, he would like to know when it will be brought back, who will be on the steering committee and the process, so that there are goals and objectives by the end of the month; he does not want to wait another month. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated what she intends to work with Councilmember Vella very quickly come up with proposals that can be brought back to Council for finalization, but she would like to see specified plans, a timeline, measurables and how to decide outcomes; she would like to get a better idea of what body will help shape the process; July is very busy; Council may need to carve out time in August. Councilmember Oddie stated with COVID, he is not going anywhere; he agrees with Vice Mayor Knox White that there has to be a definitive date; one of the beauties of the proposal is that it has a fixed, rapid schedule; there is unanimity regarding the unbundling; he wants to know how Council should proceed. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated there is agreement across the board that Council does need to unbundle Police services; she has a general sense and aspirational goal of what the resources would look like, but there is the need to analyze data; the question is what is the right model and how to get there in terms of funding. Councilmember Oddie stated Council direction qualifies under Vice Mayor Knox White's definition of a pre-determined outcome. Vice Mayor Knox White stated his proposal is that Council give staff, and the experts on the staff,… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,20 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 20 | needs to be discussion whether there should be consistent membership within the subcommittee; it is important to know whether members will be asked to be on the steering committee for a month or if they need to carve out time for a longer duration. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft concurred with Councilmember Vella regarding the amount of time envisioned for the community engagement; stated that she hopes the economy would open back up soon and people can get back to their livelihoods; inquired what the timeframe would look like. Vice Mayor Knox White stated that he has heard comments from community members that Council will disperse too much; there is a lot of validity to that; anti-racism and unbundling are long term projects; he has a personal interest in engaging in the anti- racism work and how that looks at a City and City government level; he thinks the two issues should be reviewed by the end of the month; the other policy issues can be looked at on separate tracks, but have two or three tracks going on at the same time; he trusts the steering committee for the timeframe. Councilmember Oddie stated he trusts that the steering committee would communicate to the members the expectations on the timeframe. Councilmember Daysog stated he would be looking at the end of July or early August; the City of San Leandro has made major decisions regarding de-funding Police rapidly; he believes Alameda can make similar decision on the same timeframe; he would like to look at the CAHOOTS program as a model and Council can begin to make good decisions; staff can look into an additional range of other issues which he thinks can be done by the end of month. In response to Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft's inquiry, the City Manager stated staff has some good direction and he will work with staff to set up the steering committee format and hopefully come back with staff report to Council by July 21st Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated she was looking for more than just status report. The City Manager clarified that, at the minimum, staff would come back wit… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,21 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 21 | Vice Mayor Knox White seconded the motion, added the clarification of reporting back with the proposal and the definition; stated that he wants to be clear there will be a final recommendation for goals, objectives and work plan. On the call for the question, the motion carried by the following roll call vote: Councilmembers Daysog: Aye; Knox White: Aye; Oddie: Aye; Vella: Aye; and Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft: Aye. Ayes: 5 ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft adjourned the meeting at 10:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Irma Glidden Assistant City Clerk The agenda for this meeting was posted in accordance with the Sunshine Ordinance. Special Meeting Alameda City Council 21 June 29, 2020 | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,4 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 4 | Stated that she was upset about the perceived Police policy of not answering non- criminal calls from the public; urged that the City have a clear decision making process on policies regarding City services so the public is not confused: Toni Grimm, Alameda. Stated taking until 2022 to establish Police accountability and a review board seems like a very long time; the events of May 23rd seem like clear cause to fire someone; expressed support for reductions in the Police budget: Jeff Lewis, Alameda. Stated there are underlying issues of cultural and structural racism in the Police Department; urged Council to consider a community-based approach and critical cases of mental illness when unbundling Police services: Quinn Weaver, Alameda. Stated a 50% defunding of the Police is a good start; a citizen oversight committee needs to be implemented immediately: Annie Murray, Alameda Stated that he appreciated the quick response of the Council to center Black and Brown speakers; encouraged Council to continue a creative mindset going forward; he is impressed by the local young people who have become models in the role of transforming Police: Indi McCasey, Alameda. Stated Alameda needs better oversight and better accountability; urged Council to take action sooner rather than later because she feels Black and Brown people are still being targeted: Melodye Montgomery, Alameda. Thanked Council for putting together a thoughtful process for re-imagining policing in the community; urged Council to think about the needs, wants and what can be achieved; stated there is a lot of opportunity to do good and build a system that works and is part of the community: Michele Ellson, Alameda. Stated City Hall needs to take a public stand and use the recent car vandalism incident as a teaching moment to stand against racism; she hopes a citizens oversight board includes People of Color who have been hurt by racism: Jannette Eng, Alameda. Stated that he appreciates the Council's commitment to address important issues in a timely fashion; h… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,5 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 5 | Thanked Council for its commitment to make Alameda safer by directing more resources towards community programs that support mental health and public safety; stated that she supports reducing the Police budget to invest money into community programs; it is important to highlight the voices of Black residents and Black youth in Alameda; urged Council to take immediate action by no longer accepting donations from Police Unions and committing to defund the Police by 50% in the long term and 10% in the upcoming budget cycle: Molly Montgomery, Alameda. Asked several questions of the Council regarding the Mali Watkins incident; stated APD needs to run independent of politics and should not be defunded; urged support for the Police Department and Chief Rolleri: Marilyn Grabina, Alameda. Stated that she supports the ACLU People Power's demand of a 50% reduction of APD's budget; the process moving forward should center Black voices and the voices of those who have experienced harm from policing; urged Council to address reducing policing and re-imagining public health and safety with clear, actionable goals: Savanna Cheer, Alameda. Urged Council to pledge to return all campaign or lobbying funds received from public sector Unions or stakeholders during the process and to commit to defunding APD by 50% in the long term; stated it is important that Black and Brown Alamedans have several prominent roles in the committees and boards to come: Erin Fraser, Alameda. Thanked Council for its efforts in establishing a work plan; expressed support for a 50% decrease of the APD budget; urged unbundling of Police services to include an increased budget for community programs; stated the steering committees should select members who are committed to directly addressing the various inequalities in Alameda, especially racial inequality; expressed support for centralizing the voices of Black people and those most impacted by the harms of policing; urged Council to commit to not take any public safety Union or lobbyists' money at this time… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,6 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 6 | Expressed support and thanks to APD for the investigation of the 15 year old student, Iko; stated that she does not support defunding the Police and believes that more funding, more training and support of Alameda's Police Department is the only way to keep the community safe: Anna S., Alameda. Stated that she demands serious and swift reallocation of money from the Police Department to community services, such as mental health, education, health care and homeless services; urged Council to show other cities and governments that Alameda cares about its citizens' lives more than its Police badges: Amy DeSmidt, Alameda. Expressed support for the Police Department; stated that she is concerned about the changes Council is proposing; she does not agree with removing the armored vehicle and feels sorry that the City is being misrepresented: Maria Gutierrez, Alameda. Stated that he strongly opposes the call for an immediate full defunding of the Police or an immediate large budget reduction; there is a need to reallocate funding to other agencies for services that can be performed without Police intervention, but not until going through the process of determining what services to transfer, the cost and the funding necessary to provide for Police response to serious crimes; Council has acted prudently in temporarily freezing the hiring of new Police Officers until the allocation process is worked through: Paul Foreman, Alameda. Expressed concern about Councilmember Oddie seeming more concerned about accusing the police of being racist than he is about the conduct of the Police Department; stated the issue of systemic racism within APD is the concern being addressed; there is work to do in the larger society: April Madison-Ramsey Alameda. Expressed support for the Police Department; stated Black lives do matter; having a fair judicial system is absolutely necessary; racism on the Island is not okay; applauded APD for taking self-initiated steps in addressing matters; stated that she is concerned by Council policy changes… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,7 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 7 | Expressed support for the Police and distress over recent proposals to defund and alter the current leadership structure; stated the Police need more support and funding from Council; the Department is already understaffed and under-represented in the community; vacancies must be filled, overtime shortened, leave taken and training improved if the goal is to have a quality Police force: Anthony Russell, Alameda. Stated Police budgets grow because the prison industrial complex grows; contact between oppressed people and Police must be decreased in order to make a meaningful change; Police dispatchers repeatedly try to trivialize the issue by individualizing the crimes of Officers, which is an institutional problem: Carlos Williams- Moreiras, Alameda. Stated a 50% deduction of funds to the Police Department will not make Alameda a safer community; urged everyone to do a ride along with Police Officers to see what a day is really like in their shoes: Brittany Benvenuto, Alameda. Urged Council to make an amendment to the City Charter and create a citizen-led oversight committee with members representing the system impacted; people should be appointed by the Council, not the Mayor; Alameda needs oversight and power with accountability; suggested redistributing $150,000 earmarked for the 4th of July Parade to the Black residents of Alameda as a beginning gesture and action towards reparations: Debra Mendoza, Alameda. Stated the plan put forward by Vice Mayor Knox White and Councilmember Vella is a good starting point; he is concerned about the need to give every Councilmember a subcommittee in the plan; suggested reducing the complexity the five subcommittees given the great amount of overlap of the topics: Zac Bowling, Alameda. Expressed concern about issues related to the Mali Watkins incident and mental health and support for keeping the armored vehicle; stated Alameda Police do an excellent, professional job, given the resources that they have; he does not support defunding the Police; recommended Councilmembers go… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,8 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 8 | Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated the process is about finding solutions to serious long- standing issues in the community; it should not be about further dividing community or increasing mistrust; all energy needs to be directed to achieving important objectives; she would like to look at the most effective ways to accomplish the goals; she has thought a lot about the topic of systemic racism; one definition is a system or structure that have procedures or processes that disadvantage African Americans; it is important to address and acknowledge racism exists outside of community institutions; while Council may not be able to legislate to address it, it needs to be part of the discussion; she would like to have input from all five Councilmembers working together; she was surprised by the ready-made proposal brought to the rest of the Council by two Councilmembers; she prefers organic discussion with Councilmembers starting from the same place, also keeping in mind transparency and bringing the public along; expressed concern about comments regarding the details of the Vice Mayor's proposal, which were not included in the proposal or staff report from the last meeting; she learned the comments were from Vice Mayor Knox White's detailed Facebook post; a lot of people many not have seen it; she anticipated the Council would be addressing the issue starting fresh today; expressed concern; stated that she was a little thrown-off; she would have preferred details be posted be part of the staff report or as an attachment so all Councilmembers can be on the same page; inquired how the Council can have a participatory discussion given she, and perhaps others, have not had an opportunity to read Vice Mayor Knox White's post. Vice Mayor Knox White responded it was not his intent to just drop his proposal and ask for support; he likes to get a lot of community input; he worked with Councilmember Vella on thinking of ways to move forward and what it would look like; it has to be fair, center Black and youth voices; members of the co… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,9 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 9 | Vice Mayor Knox White concurred with Councilmember Oddie; stated talking about what everyone had to say rather than focusing on a specific proposal was what he had in mind for the discussion. Councilmember Oddie stated the job of the Council as elected representatives is to set policy; the City Manager's job is to take policy direction and implement it; inquired whether Alameda Police Officers have worn Blue Lives Matter face masks. The City Manager responded that he is hearing about the masks for the first time tonight and will check on it tomorrow; stated the Police Chief may be able to provide more information. Councilmember Oddie stated if it is true; it is not conducive to working together; pretty divergent views were heard today; there was also lots of commentary about the fate of the Officers involved in the Mr. Watkins incident; requested an update on what information can be made available to the public and whether or not it is against the Charter to ask the City Manager to fire the Officers involved. The City Attorney responded it would be a violation of the Charter for Council to ask the City Manager to take any disciplinary or termination action against the Officers; stated very little information can be made public as State law makes it clear that any information related to an investigation of a Police Officer is considered confidential; the City could not invite public participation in the interview of an Officer or allow the public to review any investigator's findings or conclusions; the City could confirm the employment status of the Officer. Councilmember Oddie inquired whether the Alameda Police Union contract includes the State law regarding confidentiality. The City Attorney responded the confidentiality provision is covered by State law; the Council would not have the ability to adopt ordinances or have contracts changing the confidentiality provisions. Councilmember Oddie stated that he wants to make sure people understand Council is not taking action one way or another, which is not because… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,10 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 10 | of the force; he will not make policy by hashtag; Alameda has done a good job in terms of diversity in hiring, which is lost if blanket percent cuts are made; he has not met a racist cop in Alameda, but others say they have, which everyone should remain cognizant of; what Council needs to do is talk about building authentic, lasting relationships; what that means to him is that everyone has to put in the hard work to build partnerships and have some empathy in trying to understand what it is like to be in the other person's shoes; he sat in with dispatch and saw how much is asked of the Police Department; the onus is on the Council to make changes; empathy is important; the Council are everyday human beings; the same goes for the Police Officers; they are diverse and have families; a broad brush should not be painted against every single Police Officer who works in Alameda or against every Councilmember; on the flip side, Alameda's Officers need to do a better job of empathizing; there has to be a willingness to change culture; there are a lot of systemic race issues in the country and the City; gave an example of when his children were in school at Bay Farm; stated the school was able to raise $64,000 through the Parent Teacher Association; Paden School could not even raise 10% of that and Bay Farm did not want to share with Paden; there are new schools on one side of town and crumbling schools on the other side; there are constant battles over the homeless; there are zoning issues; attitudes need to change; there are things in the Charter that have racial impacts; the entire criminal justice system outside the Police Department needs a lot of reform. Councilmember Daysog thanked the residents for participating in tonight's meeting, an indication of democracy clearly at work; discussed his experience with the Alameda Police as a youth in Alameda; stated the Police are here because they serve the residents; described a March 2016 break-in incident at his significant other's house; stated he was impressed by the r… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,11 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 11 | budget-wise, the program could be scaled to the size which would work in Alameda; 2) the power of dealing with systemic racism occurs when it is married with Police Department accountability and oversight; if a Police commission or advisory board is pursued, Council must be upfront in stating one of the reasons for the creation is to deal with long-standing issues of racism that have been a part of Alameda's Police force; one particular task to come out of a Police commission could be strengthening the manual or policies with regard to training and racial profiling; 3) reviewing Police Department policies and practices, including dealing with crowd control issues; he would like to move forward on the three issues concretely; Councilmembers have to try their best to speak the truth as they see it and sometimes that might not coincide with how the world is seen; his responsibility to the people is to articulate what is on his mind and what he sees are the best policies for the City of Alameda going forward; growing up in Alameda has put him in a unique position to see the Police through a different lens; he respects the perspective of others affected by the events that have been happening nationally; he hopes the community can move forward around concrete issues he has put forward and come out better for it. Councilmember Vella discussed a better method for centering Black and Brown voices during public comment; stated the robotic voice is really hard to follow; the inflections are sometimes disconcerting; expressed concerned about the order of the public comment being read; stated some came through via email and some through anonymous text, which seems to be a way to get around the time limits; the process needs to be figured out; suggested going back to having someone read comments; stated that she is glad to hear some members of the community talk about how safe and secure they feel in Alameda; it is her goal, and the goal of her fellow Councilmembers, to make sure that is the experience of everybody in Alameda … | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,12 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 12 | practices; it is about diversity in all areas Citywide; there is also a bigger problem of the community and people weaponizing the Police force; it is a problem when there are people who feel confident and comfortable enough to call the Police and misuse their authority in that way; it is not just about systemic racism, it is about anti-racism, about misuse of different types of governmental, structural or institutional power; the issue is also more than just law enforcement; she would like to make it very clear that she stands by the direction Council unanimously gave to review policing policies; however, the conversation is also about the overall reimagining of services; if the title of the conversation includes law enforcement, then the responses will continue to be about law enforcement; she thinks Council would want to transcend and move beyond that; services need to be provided that are responsive to what people need; it is a disservice to the Officers and the public when armed Officers are sent to respond to a mental health scenario; Alameda can do better and has done better; there are models and Alameda has the ability to shift how services are reimagined; she would also like to focus on the process; she wants to talk about the end goal; she is not married to what the subcommittees would look like; there are five issues which may have some overlap; there are also issues that would require a deep-dive; she thinks having one group focus on the deeper issues may be helpful to inform policy and practices moving forward; there will always be tension when discussing issues of systemic racism, racism, anti- racism or power structures; it is not an either/or conversation and sometimes it is uncomfortable; acknowledging the tension leads to a better conversation and better work product; Council needs to be deliberate and thoughtful and create a safe space for people; create the space and let the people lead; thematically the question is how will Council create safety and security for all people in Alameda; she wou… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,13 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 13 | Councilmembers, received an email about Police Officers wearing Blue Lives Matter face masks; the Police Chief stated it was not a big deal, but there is now a policy against wearing the masks; he raised the issue because he was very concerned by Councilmember Oddie's comments trying to equivocate that everyone's experiences are the same; everyone's experience is not the same; he has to remind himself to stay centered on how lucky, entitled, and privileged he is as a middle-aged White man; he agrees that the Officers are people; they do a difficult job and he has a lot of respect for them; he has done ride-alongs and has talked about how they impacted him; the impact of the Officers hearing the community complain about the racists system is not equivalent to the impact on people and speakers; he looks forward to having many conversation regarding the issue; racism is not an individual action, it is a system; making it an individual action allows us to feel that somehow we are morally superior to people that we label as racists; the incident on May 23rd seems that we are indicting specific people as being immoral, which is not what is happening; he has never once talked about the specific action of any given person involved in the incident; at the end of the day, it is a system that the Council perpetuates; when people are told to calm down and step back, the system is being perpetuated; he echoes all of Councilmember Vella's comments; he was a little disappointed that the Council asked for a conversation to come forward on a topic that turned into a conversation about law enforcement when actually the adopted language was regarding the City provision of community services, responses and law enforcement, including policy review of existing policies; it was intentional so as not to get into the argument of whether the Police are good or bad; there will be law enforcement in Alameda to provide crime and violence prevention; when he talks to the Police Department staff at all levels, they talk about all the types of … | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,14 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 14 | community is told the Police are not going to respond to non-crime calls, Council will also be able to tell them what that means and how concerns will be responded to; what is important is to get going so by the end of the month, there are goals and objectives Council has agreed to; systemic racism is what Council is trying to overcome, but the question is how the City can start acting like anti-racists and how actions can be taken that work against racism and it imbues everything Council does; he has benefitted from and participated in racism; he is part of a racist system and every time he does not speak up or take action, he is perpetuating that; he rejects the idea that law enforcement, community services, planning, or anything can be talked about without talking about racism; Council needs to work with law enforcement staff and help them understand that racism and racist outcomes can be discussed without impugning the people's moral goodness or badness because that is a false dichotomy; we cannot set up the dichotomy that if we are not cheering on the Police as saviors and patriots that somehow we are anti the people and the job that they are doing; every year Council should meet with them outside the Police Station and honor the Officers that have been shot and killed; he appreciates Mr. Horvath speaking out and being open, even though they may disagree on the tactical vehicle; at the end of the day, he is here to represent the people that voted; he does not want to talk about law enforcement being good or bad; he wants to talk about what the community want; and how to get to the outcomes desired; he understands the frustration and perception that Council is dragging its feet; the budget can be cut tomorrow, but there is nowhere to put the money and Council will not fire half the Police Department overnight; he does not think Council will fire half the Police Department, but everything is on the table; tonight the Council needs to identify and approve a process; he hopes it will be community-led, not staff-… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,15 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 15 | changes, on April 3rd, the department dialed-back on a lot of self-initiated enforcement Special Meeting Alameda City Council 15 June 29, 2020 | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf,16 | CityCouncil | 2020-06-29 | 16 | because of COVID, not because of anything that happened, which was a month and a half before the May 23rd incident; the policy change were an effort to protect the Officers and the public from COVID, which he reported to the City Manager and Council; in his interview on June 10th, he was not making a drastic departure from what was already being done; the statement about not going to mental health calls was edited as he went on to say that he had hoped to start a conversation at City Hall about how to approach mental health calls, which has now happened; unfortunately, that portion was not included in the television report, which is regrettable; he has apologized to the City Manager that it could have been done in a better way; the policy direction, which is a procedural thing, was already in place on April 3rd and 100% COVID-related; he did not mean to cause any consternation in the community or with City Hall; he was also trying to respond to the reporters on what he can say to the people of Alameda to make them feel safer and be responsive; it is important for everyone to hear the clarification. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated she appreciates all the comments from the public; being able to walk in someone else's shoes becomes a useful attribute; she believes the youth today who have had negative experiences with law enforcement; she believes Alameda could do better; she met with the family whose car was vandalized and explained to them what the City is doing about racism issues in Alameda, including meeting about the issues; it is her hope to see some community task forces; the husband said he would love to be involved; as a former Marine, he protected and served people without knowing their skin color, which is the way things should work; the issue of unbundling Police services has some exciting possibilities; she has reached out to the coordinator of the CAHOOTS program; hopefully, he will be her guest this Friday at her Mayor's Town Hall; Alameda's Police Chief has reached out to the Eugene, Oregon Police Depart… | CityCouncil/2020-06-29.pdf |
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