The story began when the Mayor cut the budget of CRA to $100K. A storm of protest erupted at which point more money was put in their budget.
As part of that increase it was determined that a group ought convene to map the future of CRA. A panel of 24 citizens and public officials met over 12 weeks(?) this past summer. I was not on the panel but did sit in for all but two sessions. After the first session I approached John Moir, City Coordinator, who anyone with half a brain knew was the pivotal person on the committee. My point to Mr. Moir was that Civilian Review needed to be seen as a 'core' service, a term much in vogue thanks to the present Mayor who seemed to include it in every campaign debate of the previous summer. Mr. Moir's response to my assertion was that there were numerous ways in which the city interacted with the public and that we needed to avoid duplication in the belief that we could realize savings. In retrospect it seems obvious to me that the seed of the idea to fold CRA into the Civil Rights Department was already germinated. In the process of the suggestion that we combine this agency into the Civil Rights Department and the charge to Vanne Owen-Hayes to come up with a plan, Mr Moir deleted recommendations of the Outcomes Subcommittee that would have widened its purview to make it more of a watchdog agency over the police. Civilian Review, by its very name, ought to have a much greater scope than just cases of police brutality and excessive use of force. Without a policy making role it becomes a near empty vessel. Seen in this light it is of little wonder the Mayor thought to gut the CRA. The flip side of police brutality is what Jim Graham writes about. No police presence in the neighborhood of Franklin Avenue between 35W and Chicago Avenue is just as pernicious as police brutality. Tomorrow at 1:30PM there is a Joint Session of Health and Human Services and Public Safety and Regulatory Services Committees of the City Council to review the recommendations of Vanne Owen-Hayes regarding her administration of CRA within the Civil Rights Dept. In light of the fact the City Council is looking into the prospect of federal mediation, I think it makes perfect sense to postpone action on this plan and include it in the mediation process. One point of correction here. The City Council in no way can be said to have called in the Feds. They are being pulled kicking and screaming into this process and I suspect trying to forestall an investigation by Federal authorities of the city Police Department's relation to various minority communities. I am not sure if this is a public hearing or not. It might be citizens last chance to weigh in on this subject before it goes to the whole council. Be there or be square. Tim Connolly Dt Minneapolis __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? HotJobs - Search new jobs daily now http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/ _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:mpls@;mnforum.org Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
