In a packed room at the union hall of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) on Broadway St., members of the Black and Brown Coalition of Toledo signed an historic community agreement with Mayor Paula Hicks Hudson and Chief of Police George Kral. The agreement includes a code of conduct that police officers and Toledo residents commit to complying with, including a groundbreaking independent process where citizens can air their grievances and complaints. In addition, community groups and the City of Toledo agreed on a process for both community groups and the Toledo Police to train their respective constituencies on proper conduct, search and seizure procedures, record keeping, use of force, among other critical topics in order to promote trust and enable law enforcement to keep communities safe. Click here to read the full code of conduct!
“After two years of conversations in our community and with the Police Department and Mayor’s office, we are pleased to begin the next phase in a process to improve the relationship of our Latino and Black community and the police department. We believe this agreement will help us feel safer and also help the police department do their job more effectively. We thank everyone who put a lot of time and effort into this project. Our understanding is that this code of conduct is the first independent agreement signed between community and police groups and hope that other communities across the nation will organize themselves and create similar agreements.” said President Velasquez.
Members of the Black and Brown Coalition of Toledo include the Laborers International Union Local 500, the Toledo chapter of the NAACP, the Toledo Community Coalition, Latino’s United, the NW OH AFL-CIO, the FLOC Homies Union, and FLOC LOBOS.
“We are very proud of the relationships that have been reestablished with FLOC and Baldemar Velasquez. We realize that we have much more in common than we have apart. When we stick together and are focused in one direction and with one voice, we can accomplish quite a bit.” said Ray Wood of the Toledo NAACP.
