Nashville will convene leaders of about 100 organizations next week to discuss racial justice issues in the African-American community.
Mayor Megan Barry said Thursday that she’s calling the summit in response to nationwide tension over policing and in the wake of fatal shootings of black men and police officers.
“And it would be easy for me to simply say, that this isn’t happening in Nashville. But it’s also important to recognize and acknowledge the many voices of the people in Nashville who are hurting, who are fearful, who are angry,” Barry said.
The mayor has enlisted Lipscomb University’s Institute for Conflict Management to run the initial meeting at Pearl Cohn Comprehensive High School on July 23.
While the first event is not open to the public, any resident can nominate a group that should be represented by filling out an
online form.
A public conversation is scheduled for 1 to 4 p.m. on Sept. 10 at the Music City Center, Exhibit Hall A, 201 5th Ave. S.
Mayor Touts Existing Police Policies
Barry also used her announcement to discuss the Metro Nashville Police Department.
She praised a process that screens new officers for bias.
Separately, police have detailed that program to WPLN. At last week’s Black Lives Matter demonstration, longtime activist Kwame Leo Lillard suggested tougher screening for officers.
“The solutions have got to be with who they bring on and who they give a gun and badge to,” he said. “There are good people who want to be policemen, but the guys who want to hate and kill know they can get through the cracks.”
Police said that recruits must first pass civil service and agility exams. They are then given psychological tests and go before a “diverse” panel that uses questions “validated for police agencies by a psychologist to identify bias,” police said.
“The science tells that even well-intentioned humans (and thus, officers) manifest biases that can impact on their perceptions and behavior,” police said in a statement. “Even the best law enforcement officers may manifest bias because they are human, and even the best agencies, because they hire humans, must be proactive in producing fair and impartial policing.”
Barry said new recruits are also undergoing diversity seminars.
Yet for the praise, the mayor added that the police force has “fallen short” of reflecting the city’s diversity. She tasked her recently-named chief diversity officer with creating a strategy to broaden hiring.
Barry also noted that officers have not shot anyone this year, and she credited the department’s training in de-escalation techniques.
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