We kicked the door in at MFBPC’s April 10th Rally & Press Conference calling for NO CLOSED DOOR DEALS!
It was an unprecedented action for both being held at the Bureau of Mediation Services and calling out the Bureau’s complicity with the City Of Minneapolis and Police Federation for moving from public bargaining to closed-door mediation. Speakers also brought attention to the many ways in which the City is operating in secret to deny public engagement and decision-making for police reforms and accountability, and just why public engagement is so crucial.
Four news outlets came to the press conference, with the Star Tribune reporting the following:
Shifting the negotiations to private mediation was "a pretext for shutting out the public," said Stacey Gurian-Sherman, of MPLS for a Better Police Contract, a watchdog group that won a lawsuit permitting citizens to observe labor negotiations for the first time in the city's history.... [highlight[ing] concerns that contract discussions without public scrutiny will focus solely on raising wages without ensuring necessary reforms.
City Council members have previously criticized the police contract for lacking many of the disciplinary changes reformers demanded in the wake of George Floyd's murder by Minneapolis police officers in 2020. The reform coalition has urged that a new contract include language that would enhance police accountability and rein in misconduct.
The print coverage was welcome, but it only quoted one of the two white speakers, failing to mention any statements from our three fierce and poignant Black speakers:
Ma-Riah Roberson-Moody with MFT 59, Educational Support Professionals
Trahern Crews with Black Lives Matter-MN, and
Toshira Garraway-Allen with Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence, and a member of the MFBPC Steering Committee.
