CC PACKET 08092016 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

something here that is as great as he has seen in his life and we need to make all people equal. 1 Mayor Faust noted the police are not the bad guys, they need to hear that too, and we as white 2 people need to acknowledge and reach out to people of color. He stated the City does not raise 3 revenue through the Police Department and he takes exception to that comment. Mayor Faust 4 commented on the use of body cams and stated the City will have them soon as one of the tool to 5 help us. 6 7 Mayor Faust relayed his discussion with Governor Dayton that St. Anthony is not a racist 8 community, noting it had overwhelming re-elected Keith Ellison, the first black Muslim, five 9 times to Congress. Mayor Faust commented that one person elected to office, even the 10 President, can’t solve all the problems and it needs to be addressed at a grassroots level of the 11 community. 12 13 Mayor Faust accepted the comment that the City had not had an open process. He stated he has 14 had a lot of conversations with local pastors and shared a story from a black pastor who also 15 worked for Xfinity and had explained that he can go anywhere while wearing his logoed Xfinity 16 shirt and driving the company’s truck but it’s a different story after he goes home. 17 18 Mayor Faust explained why his letter to the editor had first appeared in the St. Paul Pioneer 19 Press, the city where Philando Castile lived. However, since most of the City’s residents read 20 the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the City added a link to his letter to the editor on its website. 21 Mayor Faust stated this is driving conversation in the metro area including the Regional Council 22 of Mayors that came out with an op-ed piece. However, he decided to write his own op-ed piece. 23 24 Mayor Faust stated the City is talking with other communities throughout the State in a way that 25 will mobilize them and actually affect change, noting that some communities have a very large 26 minority population. He stated the focus is on St. Anthony and there is a large group quietly 27 backing up the City including the Department of Justice, national police officer’s associations, 28 black Councils, and black pastors so something will get done. Mayor Faust stated it will take all 29 of us and we need that mobilization. He stated he is glad that Black Lives Matter and the 30 NAACP were non-violent, noting this matter has the City’s attention and he does not want 31 anything to jeopardize that attention. He explained this matter will go forward and the City will 32 work on it but it will take time. 33 34 Mayor Faust asked the Council to consider directing the City Manager to establish a working 35 group, which will also involve Falcon Heights and Lauderdale, to look at police policies and 36 perhaps using the Maplewood model. He noted that Human Rights Commissions do not have 37 the power to hire or fire, which is under the authority of the City Manager, including the Chief of 38 Police. Mayor Faust described the City Manager form of government, noting in St. Anthony the 39 City Manager hires and fires all of the department heads including the Chief of Police. He stated 40 the Police Chief is open to this conversation, will be presenting A New Day, and can bring it to 41 fruition. 42 43 Mayor Faust explained he had wanted to hold the July 12 Council Meeting but was advised it 44 would place City employees in danger. He stated he did not want his ego to get in the way of 45 putting someone in danger so the meeting was canceled. He explained the Village Fest parade 46 was cancelled because it takes all the City’s resources to handle and staff was exhausted. That 47 26