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I wish the anti-community-policing politicians listened more to Black people.
I spend quite a bit of time trying to understand the nuances and varying perspectives that is the Black community. I take this responsibility very seriously, making special efforts to listen until I hear something new. I actually consulted with some Black friends who happen to be Republican, in an effort to just get some sense of where the anti-community-policing bills SB 168, SB 394/HB 1427 and SB 311 are coming from.
For my Black Republican friends, it has been extremely difficult being associated with the GOP during the last presidency. Most don’t want to be “outed.” Stuff like the anti- community-policing bills does not help.
One Black Republican friend sort of initially supported the idea behind SB 168—the police takeover bill. My friend volunteered that there was no way to recall the current mayor of Indianapolis. (This person had looked it up.) But by the end of our discussion, my friend was more concerned that the level of government overreach in the anti-community-policing bills wasn’t consistent with conservative principles.
Another Black Republican supported SB 311—the bill that eliminates the use-of-force continuum—mostly because that person didn’t think the law meant what it says. Suffice it to say we disagreed. Removing the use-of-force continuum for police officers is the exact opposite of what a multiracial coalition marched for this summer.
The rest of my Black Republican friends were just frustrated.
I raise these conversations because I’m wondering which Black people the authors of SB 168, SB 394, SB 311 or HB 1427 spoke with before filing those bills?
Of course, legislators don’t have to get permission from Black people to file bills. I know Black people have reached out to some of the legislators.
But after the relationship between the Black community and the police sparked riots across the country, one might think some legislators would have taken the time to listen to Black people—not just the ones they knew, so they could get a picture to post on social media—until they heard something new.
It just seems odd—maybe even colorblind—that, after the largest demonstration supporting Black people in U.S. history, some legislators think the use-of-force continuum and community solutions generated and support by the Black community (something new) were the problems that needed to be addressed this session.
It’s the equivalent of not only refusing to march with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1960s civil rights movement, but also filing a state law to make peaceful protests harder to do during that movement.
The work done on HB 1006 in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives is a powerful testament to thoughtful leadership. I do know that the bill’s author worked with Black legislators and law enforcement on the bill. And while I personally want to see chokeholds banned, HB 1006 makes much progress.
If legislators wanted to talk to the Black community long enough to get past our frustration with the anti-community-policing bills, they would hear support for HB 1006 but also a desire to address root-cause issues. HB 1333 calls for cultural competency training for health care workers. HB 1146 creates a healthy food fund. SB 33 creates equity, diversity and inclusion officers in K-12 schools. SB 270 revisits the tenant-landlord relationship. These bills need to be heard.
I just wish some politicians bothered to listen to more Black people before fixing problems that don’t exist.•
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Wolley is President and CEO of Black Onyx Management, Inc. Send comments to ibjedit@ibj.com.
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