An Open Letter to the Mayor and City Council of Doraville, GA¶
The events of the past week have made me take stock and reflect on what part I have played in the over all structure of our society. The answer I arrived at was: I’m awful because I haven’t done anything. I have sat quietly safe in my home and approved of the actions of others, but I have not taken any real action. I may have commiserated with others that already agree with me, but that is not enough.
Mayor Geierman and Council Members Yeoman, Henshaw, Morris, Koontz, and Alexander,
I write today to express my concerns regrading the senseless deaths of unarmed black persons that have happened over the past few weeks. I personally find these events alarming and discomforting. Although none of these events occurred within the City of Doraville, I believe it is our moral duty to ensure that remains so.
I have read the statement from Chief Atkinson and the note of support from Mayor Geierman in the community news. I feel this is a great first step, but we can do better. I strongly support the effort to make our policing policies in line with 8 Can’t Wait and the Police Use of Force Project. I believe the words of those groups are strong and do not need to be clouded by my pitiful attempts to paraphrase. I believe we should act and act swiftly to send a strong statement that this type of behavior will not be tolerated in Doraville.
If these were the actions of a citizen, we would be using terms like “aggravated assault,” or “aggravated battery,” or even “aggravated manslaughter” which are felonies (I learned more than I ever wanted to know about these terms serving as a juror on a murder trial).
I also heard over the weekend that an effort to repeal the state’s citizen’s arrest and “stand you ground” laws is under way. I believe it would be beneficial for the city to express support for both these measures. If these measure do not pass, the city should investigate its options to overrule them locally. The only thing these types of policies encourage is vigilante justice. And although vigilante justice may be romanticized in westerns and comic books, we do not live in the movies. We have seen the result of allowing untrained persons taking the law into their own hands. It just leads to needless death and suffering.
A question that frequently arises during council meetings “What are our neighboring cities doing?” The question is usually in regard to redevelopment or economic reforms. And while we may not have the area or resources of a city like Dunwoody, Chamblee, or Brookhaven, we can be a moral leader in DeKalb. We have already paved the way by adopting the non-discrimination ordinance. Let us keep the momentum going by showing the county, state, and the country that Doraville has heard the voices of the people and will act.