Editor,
An article in the April 7 issue of the Warwick Valley Dispatch reported that the Town Board has adopted the Town of Warwick Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative Plan. It was submitted to New York State in time to meet the Apr. 1 deadline.
We attended both of the EO 203 committee meetings, as well as the third and last (Mar. 9) public comment meeting. In our opinion, these three meetings were insufficient to meet the goal of reviewing Warwick Police practices and policy through a lens of racial justice, as mandated by EO 203. Not only were there too few meetings; there was also no allowance for public interaction or conversation during the first two meetings.
The third, and final meeting provided the only opportunity for public comments regarding the process and plan. Statements were encouraged but not a dialogue. Many participants were not prepared for this format. Yet, they were able to offer a wide range of thoughts which would, in our opinion, have added meaning and scope to the entire process.
To the best of our recollection, there was no anti-police rhetoric. However, there were numerous comments and recommendations offered regarding the shortcomings of the Warwick EO 203 process. The comments spoke to the absence of public input and meaningful conversation. Some participants also stated, as citizens of color, their distress at the insufficient number of appointed committee members that could share and represent their experiences and pain.
The last comment in the meeting came from an unidentified participant who viewed the meeting as being critical of the police. Unfortunately, no time was allowed by the moderator for any participants to ask clarifying questions. In our minds, the caller misunderstood the group’s frustration about the EO 203 process and instead labeled us anti-police.
We are not anti-police. We are not for defunding the police. Far from it. Many professions routinely review their performances for the purposes of ongoing assessment and improved effectiveness. This strikes us as a responsible attitude for all times. In our current time of trying to address racial inequality in our public structures and institutions, fulfilling the mandate of EO 203 was an opportunity to meet this societal obligation.
How do we begin to respectfully hear each other’s experiences, concerns and viewpoints in a way that can help us grapple with our complex public issues? Can we find our way to search together for common ground in addressing our problems? We are interested in finding a way to bridge our different positions, whatever they may be, with respectful and clarifying dialogue. Can we, as a community, work to achieve this?
ROZ & BRIAN GITT
