A gathering of Valley faith leaders held a news conference at the Union Baptist Church on Lincoln Ave. in Youngstown Monday, June 8, and called for an end to racial injustices in the Valley and across the U.S. 

Union Baptist Church Paster Michael Harrison Sr. said, "Awesome change," was coming to the Valley.

Several church leaders spoke on what change is needed in all police departments, and why changing policing policies are needed to end the discrimination of people of color.

Dr. M. Rosie Taylor of Calvary Baptist Church in Youngstown spoke on how racial injustices are not new, but how prejudice and discrimination have existed in the U.S. from the Jim Crow era through today.

"Changing policies will end the discrimination," Dr. Taylor said.

Many of the faith leaders praised the youth for the peaceful protests that happened in the Valley in recent weeks after the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in police custody in Minnesota. Four white officers, including Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on Floyd's neck, have been charged in his death. 

The Reverend Kenneth Simon of New Bethel Church in Youngstown thanked the youth for the peaceful protests in the Valley in the wake of racism and police brutality while calling for justice. 

Simon said the protests "Are necessary to get the attention for the injustice of people of color in this country."

Simon said the next step is to demand changes within the police departments themselves. 

The clergy had a list of areas of concern of area police departments, which includes:

  • Use of excess force
  • Racial profiling
  • Mandatory police body cameras
  • Binding citizens review boards
  • Outside investigations
  • Punitive actions
  • Federal  investigations into police matters involving racial issues
  • Mandatory diversity training before/after becoming a police officer
  • Fair police union contracts

Simon called for an end to the violence against people of color saying "Change must take place."

He said, "It starts with the implementation of the policies we are calling for."

Jaladah Aslam, the Regional Coordinator at the Ohio Unity Coalition said there will be a public forum at New Bethel Church in Youngstown on June 23 at 6 p.m. for young people to discuss issues with area law enforcement officers.

Aslam said, "Change will come.”

21 News WFMJ anchor/reporter Lindsay McCoy asked the faith leaders if the restructure of law enforcement also included the call for defunding Valley police departments. Pastor Simon replied that President Obama's "Campaign Zero" has yet to be adopted, and stills sit in document form and have not been implemented since 2016. 

Campaign Zero is a police reform campaign proposed by activists associated with the Black Lives Matters website. The plan consists of ten proposals, all of which are aimed at reducing police violence.

Pastor Simon added that If the police departments refuse to change, then defunding police departments may be the next step. 

Following the press conference, 21 News made an effort to reach out to and speak with police chiefs and administrators in Youngstown, Warren and Niles.

Youngstown Mayor Tito Brown said he would like to take a couple of days to analyze the proposals, meet with the city's police chief, and develop a clear understanding and plan going forward before addressing any media questions.

21 News did speak with Youngstown Police Chief Robin Lees. Lees said the city already takes a very "proactive stance."

Lees went on to say that between the city's use of force and ethics policies they meet many suggested standards.

Examples included:

  • Annual training in diversity, community relations, or a related subject matter.
  • Annual review of the use of force policy using training scenarios and/or a written test. Officers must pass with a 90%.
  • Annual training on how to deal with mental health issues and de-escalation training.
  • Voluntarily report "serious" use of excessive force to the FBI.
  • The chief meets quarterly with local clergy, NAACP and other interested parties.
  • Every couple of year's the city's police policy is reviewed and updated.

Youngstown does not have body-cameras. Less said, "Would I like to have body cameras? Absolutely." He then went on to describe the financial challenges. He said the issue is not purchasing the cameras, but the cost of storing the data. He said the city is already under a tight budget, and said with the pandemic each department was asked to cut cost by 20%.

In Warren, the city's law Director Enza Cantalamess said he had not seen the press conference, but said the changes are "systemic, large and in many cases warranted," but noted the issue is a "big mountain to move." He said the suggestions will require discussions on what is implementable and what is not practical.

Niles Mayor Steve Mientkiewicz said the city already has a mandatory body camera policy and does yearly excessive force reporting.

However, back in 2019 a case involving the shooting death of Matthew Buroughs an officer was disciplined when the camera was not working.