Letter: Time for Reckoning should be required reading for law enforcement

Letter to the Editor | Times Union | By Bob Blackmon, Troy

Congratulations to the Sanctuary for Independent Media for its online 2021 the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.

Given that police departments all over the country are being scrutinized about racism, including the Troy Police Department, and that police departments in New York are facing compliance with Executive Order 203, I wonder if Troy public officials participated in the event. I really hope they did, not only because the program was educational, but because their involvement would be an indication of their concern about racism. On the other hand, Troy Police Chief Brian Owens is on record as saying that there is no racism in his department. Many citizens beg to disagree.
 
A wealth of information on systemic racism can also be found on the website timeforreckoning.org, a virtual symposium sponsored by the Albany Center for Law and Justice, the New York State Writers Institute, the Times Union, the Steve McKee Foundation, the Justice Center of Rensselaer County, and several other groups, including the Sanctuary for Independent Media. I highly recommend that site, especially to police leadership, police union leaders and officers. In fact, mayors, police chiefs, county executives and sheriffs should make the site required reading for all law enforcement personnel as well as requiring it of themselves.