The battleground that is Lake Street
Lake Street,” Kay says in the beginning “ …surrounding the riots in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by the MPD… ”
I take exception to her statement. The Minneapolis Police Department did not kill Mr. Floyd, a fired Minneapolis police officer did. This is the kind of “stirring the shit pot” that we don’t need and does absolutely no good. Has your paper not ever heard of accurate reporting? It is time to stop being part of the problem and starting to be part of the solution.
—Alan Jones
Response from Kay Schroven:
Mr. Jones,
Your response to my Southside Pride piece “The Battleground that is Lake Street” was forwarded to me. I understand your point: that the individuals involved in the death of Mr. Floyd are not necessarily representative of the entire MPD. And, they are former officers. At the time of Mr. Floyd’s death, they were employees of the MPD and hence representatives of the organization. That was my view when I wrote that. It seems you object to my naming the organization rather than individuals.
If Mr. Floyd’s death was an isolated incident, I may be inclined to be more sympathetic to your point. However, it is not, as we well know.
I can assure you that Southside Pride is dedicated to solutions and did not intend to stir the pot.
The good news is that we live in a democracy where we can express our views openly, as you have done. I’m thankful for that.
Happy holidays to you.
—Kay
Editor’s Note:
What is the “problem,” Mr. Jones? Isn’t the problem the endemic racism in the MPD? We know the FBI in 2006 warned of white supremacists taking over police departments across the country. We know the Police Federation has twice elected Bob Kroll president. We know Bob Kroll also heads up City Heat, a motorcycle gang of police officers from the Twin Cities that fly Confederate flags and wear Nazi war medals. We know Bob Kroll was found guilty of racist discrimination against Arradondo and four other MPD officers. We know the MPD has done nothing to punish or criticize the white MPD officers who killed Terrance Franklin, Jamar Clark, Thurman Blevins and Travis Jordan. We think that’s the problem with the MPD. We think part of being the solution to the problem is first understanding the problem.
What’s your solution, Mr. Jones?
