A Call to Arms - Community Leaders Stand Up and SPEAK UP!!!!

Submitted by bigpoppachuck on Thu, 2008/09/18 - 10:32am.

Chuck Williams
"Serving the Community"
P.O. Box 3805; Knoxville, Tn. 37917
865-237-8761

Time for Urban Community Leaders to Step UP!!

Instead of crying out "Police Brutality" when law enforcement is doing their jobs in a legal, professional manner to maintain peace in our communities, some Community Leaders in the Urban Community should be seeking to take back our streets.

Fact, three black men shot a Police Officer while they are in the act of committing a crime. The police arrive on the scene and are told that the men fled to a certain area. Upon the arrival of the police, all of the men start running. The police give pursuit and apprehend two of the suspected shooters. No one was beaten, no one's Civil Rights were violated and the name of the third suspect was obtained from the suspects.

Instead of rejoicing the Knoxville NAACP tries to ridicule the police as to how they captured the suspects. The police acted professionally and legally without anyone being hurt or abused.

While at the Tennessee Valley Fair this past Saturday (an event that my family and I as well as most of the community look forward to every year), I witnessed two thugs fighting. Again the officers of Knoxville Police stepped in and immediately were able to subdue one suspect without much of a struggle. The other suspect decides he wants to fight the Police. Four Police Officers wrestled the suspect to the ground, but he still would not stop fighting. More officers arrived on the scene and immediately started maintaining crowd control so that no one else would get involved or get hurt. I immediately started yelling to the suspect to stop fighting before he was hurt. He eventually was bought under control and placed into custody.

Now some of the people in the crowd noticed me talking to the Police and one of them recognized that I was a political figure as well as a community activist and demanded that I hold the police accountable for manhandling the suspect.

I fully explained that at no time did the police ever use unnecessary force and in fact in my opinion, they showed more than reasonable restraint in not either using their tazer gun or tear gas on the suspect while he was fighting. Again at no time was anyone's Civil Rights violated and the police acted very professionally.

I am sick and tired of so called Community Leaders and the Community on a whole making excuses for "misguided or troubled youth" (their words not mine). Good boys do NOT hit Police Officer. We need to step up and not only show support to our law enforcement officers but start speaking out on crime in general, whether its black on black, black on white, white on white, white on black, etc.

The urban community is a melting pot of all races and we need to come together as one. If as a community leader you sit by idly and only speak out to attack the first and last defense of our community the Police and Sheriff Department, than you are not part of the problem but a part of the solution. As many of you know I am seeking a seat on the City Council in the next election and if my thoughts here offend you and you do not vote for me, SO BE IT, I will not compromise myself to be elected to office.

Chuck Williams
Community Activist and
Political Figure
Knoxville, Tn.

11
vote

R. Neal's picture
Bumped to the front page.

Bumped to the front page.

sugarfatpie's picture
Do you support better pay for street cops?

I'm talking about the one's who actually get out there and patrol.
Seems to me most are underpaid around here.

-Sugarfatpie (AKA Alex Pulsipher)

"X-Rays are a hoax."-Lord Kelvin

Better Pay for Police

I have always felt that it is sad that Police Officers HAVE to work 2nd jobs to make ends meet, or when a Police Officer is hurt in the line of duty that a collection has to be taken up for him/her to meet their family obligations since they are only collecting their Police salary and nothing else. Its very sad that the UT Police make more than KPD and I would very much be looking into this when and if elected to the City Council.

sugarfatpie's picture
"looking into this" is not a bold statement

I respect what you are saying in support of poorly paid cops.
This town needs a strong advocate for police officers (as opposed to the sherif).
But if you are going to grandstand on the issue of respect for the police, you need a clear statement on wether or not you support higher pay for police.

I want to know if you support higher pay for cops, yes or no.

If the answer is that you will be "looking into this", I suggest you pack up and go home.

But if the answer is yes, then I want to know how you are going to go about getting it for them.
Do you know what needs to be done?
Who do you need to talk to?
Where do you need to build political support for such a change?

-Sugarfatpie (AKA Alex Pulsipher)

"X-Rays are a hoax."-Lord Kelvin

Why the non sequitur?

But if you are going to grandstand on the issue of respect for the police, you need a clear statement on wether or not you support higher pay for police.

I don't think a particular viewpoint on one of these things qualifies you to speak to the other.

I think the City should pay cops on the street better, but whether they ever do or not has nothing to do with whether or not citizens should avoid impeding them when they're doing what they're supposed to do. That was the poster's concern.

I am not grandstanding as

I am not grandstanding as you call it but speaking from the heart as well as being sick and tired of certain people in the public protecting the criminal element, and if you attack a law officer you ARE part of the criminal element. I do have something in mind to attempt to give the Police and Firefighters a decent raise without impacting citizens taxes. Let me finish working it out and than I will let you know what it is!

First and last line of defense

The citizenry is always the first and last line of defense. Always have and always will, even when there are professional law enforcement available to do their job.

Talk the Talk but DON'T Walk the Walk!

Citizens will talk the talk but they will not walk the walk. If a crazed gunman or woman were to open fire on a crowd the citizens will run, the police officer in the crowd will confront the suspect putting their life on the line.

If a crazed gunman or woman

If a crazed gunman or woman were to open fire on a crowd the citizens will run

Like they did at the UU church?

Community Activist

Community Activist and
Political Figure

Now, THERE'S an interesting signature.

Signature

Even after the primary, I was still and still very much involved in the community problems and political activities going on here!

group think

On police or any other subject I get tired of knee jerk reactions as you mentioned. If you are liberal you must blame the cops, if you are conservative, blame video games and abortion etc etc. People in politics have forgotten how to think things through. Thanks for this Chuck.

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