About the Community-City Working Group and Its Work ‘The purpose of the Community-City Working Group (CCWG) is to engage the community of Greensboro in serious ongoing dialogue to better understand the history of policing in our City and to take action seeking solutions to what many experience as an abuse of police power. The CCWG is composed of diverse citizens convened by Mayor Nancy Vaughai and Rev. Nelson Johnson, The CCWG has been meeting weekly since March 30, 2015. We believe that 10 positively change the current police culture will require at least three things of the police and the community a. Reising the moral and ethical imperative for bette policing Raising the knowledge level about the forms and extent of abuse of police power © Raising the commitment and courage of the entire community to make necessary changes and to embrace our role as citizens and residents in an inclasive equitable democracy We affirm the need for the police. The police are a vital and necessary part of our community. ‘The police are given wemendous power in order to properly do their job. With such power itis absolutely necessary for citizens to demand oversight of the police, ensuring truthfulness, trarsparency and equal treatment in accordance with the law. The CCWG has framed the police issue as “a culture of abuse of police power.” ‘The CCWG is aware that the police issue is not isolated and is linked to jobs and economics, education and health care, politics and policies, all rooted in a long racialized history. Many have questioned whether abuse of police power actually exists. However, over the past (wo years there have been a qumber of high profile killings of Affican Americans by police officers across the nation, ranging from Florida (o Ferguson, Cleveland to Chieago, New York to Baltimore, and beyond, These deaths ave made clear the abuse of police power and have pat 2 spotlight on relationships between police and communities of color, especially poor communities. The reality of racial disparities in policing in Greensboro was highlighted in a fiont page, above-the-fold New York Times article on October 25, 2015. We are convinced that transforming the culture of the Greensboro Police Department and the City will require broad participation by people from all walks of life in Greensboro, Our gathering tonight is the Launeh of well-organizes! and well-designed community gatherings in each of the Cys five eity council districts, with an emphasis on making sure all voices are heard. The district meetings will be followed by a citywide town hall meeting, where all the lessons and proposals will be brought together with recommended avenues for ongoing citizen participation and oversight. With the whole community working together, Greensboro will be positioned to make a breakthrough in policing, ‘modeling for ourselves and possibly for the nation a just, eeative pathway forward, Its our hope to help unite our racially divided City and to join with others to lead Greensboro info a new era of greater public trust in the values of truthfulness, transpareney, respect and ‘accountability. This trust can not only transform our police cukure but can also inspire and accelerate transformative work in the economic, educational, political, and other spheres. commanityctyworking