It was painful for my wife and I to watch the latest tragedy in our City continue to unfold- all while holding our children close this morning, and considering the hopes we shared after last year’s tough election. 

However, Amir Locke is dead, and once again Minneapolis is in the national news for ALL the wrong reasons…

… And once again, no one stands up to take responsibility.

Not a single leader stands up to unite the City. Instead, the same tired leaders deliver the same tired responses and excuses – all trotted out to try to obfuscate and distract from the continued failures of their direction and approach, and their absolute inability to understand or genuinely connect with those who are most affected by these tragedies.

Simply put: they lack the CULTURAL COMPETENCE to unite us.

Turns out you cannot buy or appoint REAL credibility in community and neighborhoods. (And don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.)

I still want a future where my son will run to a peace officer, not where he will run away.

Don’t we all want our children to be judged by the content of their character – and NOT their reaction time to commands being screamed at them as they wake up in the early hours on a family members couch?

At Mitchell Hamline School of Law, they taught us about warrants but they never taught us to ensure these are served in the MOST militaristic way possible.

The MPD is NOT a military force. Military tactics have to go. We know there will be a need for armed officers, but these military tactics seem to emphasize fear and confusion, and target citizens as “enemies”.

We must end this culture TODAY.

Last Fall, the power brokers afraid of real change utilized fear brilliantly but they did hold out the guarantee that things would be better – “next time” – if all of us in the City just gave Mayor Frey and Company “one more chance”.

But here we are again. Waiting for the change and how you all – and this Mayor – will “do it better”. Waiting for the same tired excuses.

The time is now to show us.

My wife and I, our family, our friends, our neighbors, our elders, our youth, our small businesses, our nonprofits – we are ALL watching you. Show us! You all have our complete attention.

Show us! Prove your words Mayor Frey. Be proactive, stop waiting to do what’s right. You’re a lawyer, and a “brilliant” one as we were told by the Star Tribune.

You have the “answers”. Show us. Stand by your promises. Take proactive action, Interim Chief Huffman. Don’t wait for your successor. Get started today- it is the city’s mandate to you through the authority you hold.

Another young black life has been lost because he didn’t make the right decisions in the few seconds he was given when armed and unknown men burst into the place he was sleeping.

Amir Locke is dead, and the same leadership – with the same tired approaches and promises are all this great city has to show for it.