LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Reading the comments sections of a social media site doesn't usually defuse tensions, but for the Independent Review Committee charged with creating reforms in the Little Rock Police Department, those comments staved off what could have been a loud public meeting.
The panel created by Mayor Frank Scott Jr. scheduled the virtual forum to get unfiltered feedback from the public, but the meeting fell on the night after vandals sprayed graffiti on police headquarters, fallen officers memorial, and district court building.
With that as the backdrop, committee chair Tamika Edwards calmly read a series of comments left on the city's Youtube page, Facebook Live feed, and voice mails.
"We thought that it was important for us to get as much community feedback as possible as we go through this entire process," Edwards said as she opened the meeting.
The other panelists, a group of lawyers, professors, and former officers introduced themselves and then sat and listened in their homes or offices as the comments came in.
"I would love to hear the committee's comments on additional training for officers in their interactions with emotionally disturbed individuals," read one.
"Officers should not be allowed to use their badges to be city-paid bullies," Edwards said. "That was a comment that we received."
Some questions focused on concerns in Latino communities:
"Does LRPD have any partnerships with federal agencies under the direction of the department of homeland security, particularly immigration and customs enforcement?" one person asked.
Dr. Terry Richard, a professor and expert on Hispanic and Latino communities, defended the department's recent history of going after criminals and not the undocumented.
"They want to catch the perpetrators, not harass individuals who are often hard workers here in the city," Dr. Richard said.
For the most part, after introducing themselves, members of the committee didn't respond to the questions.
Edwards said that was by design to take in the feedback and prepare to deliver it to the department without any implicit bias from the committee.
But civil rights attorney Furonda Brasfield alluded to a list of demands recently delivered by a group of reform activists.
The group disrupted the city board meeting Tuesday and Brasfield said they had posted those demands on Facebook.
"We want to make sure that the public knows that we're including those in what we're passing along to the vendors," Brasfield said. "So that the voices of the people that are working really, really hard to be heard on this issue."
The meeting wrapped up about an hour earlier than scheduled, but comments can still be submitted via email at IRC@littlerock.gov.