Last Tuesday ELGL hosted another Twittersation to discuss the events in Ferguson, MO that resulted from the shooting death of 18 year old Michael Brown by local police officer. Moderator Brittany Bennett facilitated a conversation on race and how public servants can be better prepared to deal with the community tensions it can cause. Check out some of our tweets in this Storify summary.
#ELGLFerguson
We’ve all seen the news and know that after the grand jury decided not to indict Wilson, protests and riots ensued around the country, sparking much conversation about race, police brutality and excessive use of force, particularly in communities of color. With #ELGLFerguson, our goal was to provide ELGL members and friends with a forum to productively process these events and the issues they bring to light. Though our chat could have lasted much longer, we spent just one hour discussing questions on the management mistakes that were made in Ferguson, how local government administrators and police can make changes that build trust and dissolve racial tensions, and how we can develop leaders to productively tackle these issues.
Thank you to everyone who participated in this important. We hope you were enlightened and inspired to have tough conversations with your colleagues and out in your communities. If you weren’t able to join, you can check out the Storify summary of the chat below.
It is important to note that the day after this Twittersation the Staten Island, NY grand jury in the Eric Garner case also decided not to indict the officer involved in his death, sparking renewed protests across the country that bring into question some of the solutions we discussed, particularly the use of body cameras. As we move forward from these events, we look forward to leaders like you working to make our communities safe and equitable for everyone.