Communities United Against Police BrutalityTM is a Twin-Cities based organization that was created to deal with police brutality on an ongoing basis. We work on the day-to-day abuses as well as taking on the more extreme cases. Our overriding goal is to create a climate of resistance to abuse of authority by police organizations and to empower local people with a structure that can take on police brutality and actually bring it to an end. We provide support for survivors of police brutality and families of victims so they can reclaim their dignity and join the struggle to end police brutality.
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ICE OUT NOW! LEGAL DEFENSE FUNDCurrently 22 people (and that number is growing) are facing federal charges for activities related to protesting ICE. Legal defense against federal charges is EXPENSIVE! We can't expect the people who bravely acted to protect our community to face these charges alone. For over 5 years, CUAPB has been administering a fund to pay for the legal defense of police accountability protesters. We have been asked to administer a legal defense fund for the benefit of people arrested for defending our community under this ICE siege. This fund will be used to defend people facing charges for standing with our neighbors and protecting our community. To donate: 1) Click on this special PayPal link. This link is separate from regular CUAPB donations. 2) Write a check to CUAPB and note "ICE OUT legal defense" in the memo. Mail to CUAPB, 4200 Cedar Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55407. 3) Contact us by email at [email protected] for electronic transfers (larger donations only). |
ANNOUNCING THE LINDA TIRADO SCHOLARSHIP!
Linda Tirado is a photojournalist who was seriously injured while covering the 2020 Minneapolis protests following the murder of George Floyd. While documenting the protests, Minneapolis Police shot her in the eye with a rubber bullet. This resulted in the loss of her eye and has since made her terminally ill. Her experience highlights the risks journalists face, even while performing essential work to inform the public. This scholarship honors Linda’s courage and dedication by encouraging others to continue telling important stories and spreading awareness through photography and journalism.
To honor Linda's work and sacrifice, CUAPB is offering four $5000 scholarships to individuals passionate about photojournalism.
Recipients of this grant must be Minnesota residents pursuing majors in photojournalism, journalism, or a substantially similar field at a Minnesota-based accredited higher education institution. This is a one-time scholarship of $5000.
Click TIRADO SCHOLARSHIP in the navigation bar above for more information and to apply.
Update on MDHR Consent Decree with Minneapolis
The Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR) completed an investigation into the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Police Department. You can read the result of their investigation here. The MDHR found widespread discrimination and problem conduct. As a result, they negotiated a consent decree with the city. A consent decree is a court-enforceable agreement for a list of changes the city and police department must make.
The consent decree is made up of 13 parts that address many areas of policing including non-biased policing, use of force, searches, seizures and arrests, accountability, and other important aspects of the MPD’s interactions with the community. Also included are measures on training and officer wellness. Some parts are very good, others are weak and deferential to the MPD. Our analysis of the agreement is here.
What does all of this mean for the community?
The agreement between MDHR and the city was signed by Judge Karen Janisch on July 13, 2023. Although the community was allowed no role during the negotiations, Judge Janisch ruled that the only way the community could intervene in the case is through amicus "friend of the court" briefs. CUAPB and two other organizations went through enormous effort and expense (filing fees alone were over $500) to submit briefs. Our brief is here. Our concern is that the agreement includes a provision that allows the police federation contract to override the agreement. It also defines coaching as an acceptable way to deal with serious complaints, keeping them secret--the very issue that is in court right now. Despite telling the community that the only way we could have a say in the agreement is through an amicus brief, Judge Janisch disrespectfully tossed all of the briefs by claiming the community was trying to get her to "blue line" parts of the agreement when what we specifically asked is for her not to approve it until the MDHR and city fixed it.
This means that the ONLY way the community can have any involvement in this agreement is to show up at every opportunity to hold the city and MDHR accountable for real change. We will have to watch this process closely every step of the way.
What's next?
The city and MDHR have selected Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELEFA) for the Independent Evaluator (monitor). ELEFA is a strong choice with experience monitoring consent decrees in other cities. The goal now is to make sure this team works extensively with the community and hears our voices. Monitoring CANNOT be about just checking the boxes of what the city says it has accomplished--ELEFA has to verify with the community that the changes are actually happening in the streets.
Proposed Policy Changes
Under the consent decree, the city is required to issue new policies in the areas of use of force, nondiscriminatory policing, policing of youth, stops/searches/arrests and other areas. The consent decree also requires the city to give the community 45 days to review those policies and provide feedback and recommendations.
REVIEWING THESE PROPOSED POLICIES AND GIVING FEEDBACK IS CRITICAL! It's clear, for example, that the community's view of use of force is very different from that of police. In their use of force policy, the MPD classified the pointing of a gun as a level 1 use of force, the lowest level. We have urged that it be considered a LEVEL 2 use of force because members of the community find having a gun pointed at them utterly terrifying. Classifying it as level 1 trivializes the impact it has in addition to lowering the level of force review. Further, a deadly weapon should never be pointed at anyone unless the use of deadly force is potentially justified. It's an example of how police perceptions don't match community perceptions. We hope to convince the city to make this change as well as our other recommendations. As the city continues to release new draft policies, we continue to review them and submit recommendations. You can see these recommendations below. Contact us at [email protected] if you want to help with this work.
CUAPB policy recommendations:
Use of Force Policies (14 policies)
Values and Anti-Discrimination
Emergency Medical Response
Transport of Arrestees
Nondiscriminatory Policing and Procedural Justice (2 policies)
Stop, Search and Arrest Policies (23 policies)
Youth Policies (18 policies)--also reviewed by Strategies for Youth
Body-Worn Cameras and In-Car Cameras
Accountability Policies (9 policies)
Training Policies (3 policies)
How you can be involved:
You can provide feedback on policies and other parts of the city's implementation here. In addition, as the city begins to work on implementing the requirements of the consent decree, ELEFA must check in regularly with the community about how the city is doing. Take advantage of every opportunity to give them an honest assessment about whether the city and the MPD are making the changes that need to be made.
The bottom line is that it is still up to the community to make sure the MDHR consent decree brings about the changes we need.
