Mary Hamrick: Not far enough

Articles and a Sept. 12 editorial highlighted conversations that Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown had with Raleigh residents regarding steps that the department is taking to improve relationships between police officers and the communities they police, primarily black neighborhoods in Southeast Raleigh.

Chief Deck-Brown pointed out new consent forms that officers must provide to persons who are stopped and an upcoming test of body cams for Raleigh officers, efforts that have the support of the Raleigh City Council.

The chief and the editorial made reference to the need to hire more women officers and officers of color. What none of these proposals address are the intrinsic inequalities imbedded in our criminal justice system of which the police are a part. Why do we not trust officers to give citizens informed consent without documentation? Why do officers need to wear body cams in the first place? How does bringing in officers who look like the people they police stand a chance to reform a racist, sexist system, rather than turning these new hires into agents of that system?

Reform of the RPD requires a systemic change that the chief, City Council and, apparently the editorial staff of the N&O refuse to consider.

This story was originally published September 15, 2016 at 6:01 PM with the headline "Mary Hamrick: Not far enough."