Mpls. School Board Director Proposes To Terminate Contract With MPD
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Minneapolis School Board Director Josh Pauly announced Friday that he wrote a resolution to terminate the districts' contract with the Minneapolis Police Department.
The resolution, he said, was written with the support of Chair Kim Ellison and Minneapolis Board of Education Director Siad Ali.
In addition, Pauly proposed the board would cease further negotiations with the MPD, and help the superintendent develop alternate plans to keep students safe.
"Our communities are in pain and our city is on fire as a result of MPDs blatant disregard for black lives," he said on Twitter. "Hopefully this can be a small step towards the dramatic changes that are needed in our city and beyond."
Pauly said he will bring the resolution before the board on June 2.
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The Minneapolis Federation fo Teachers also called for MPS to cut ties with the police department, supporting Pauly's resolution.
"The officers of the Minneapolis Police Department have become symbols of fear to the children those officers were sworn to serve and protect," said president-elect of the federation Greta Callahan. "The killing of George Floyd and the escalation of the recent protests were only the latest examples of the department operating without empathy for our neighbors or accountability to our elected leaders."
In a statement released by Minneapolis Public Schools, Superintendent Ed Graff said "I am not naive about the role systems like MPS have historically played in the disenfranchisement of many in our community. You have my commitment that we will continue to improve our own work."
Though he did not mention Pauly's proposal, he did say that the district will work to ensure policies and practices do not perpetuate harm, especially to children of color and American Indian students.
On Wednesday, University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel announced the school would cut some ties with the MPD. The university will no longer contract with the MPD for sporting events and large ceremonies, and will no longer engage with them for specialized services such as K-9 explosive detection units.
The decisions from Pauly and Gabel came after the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died while officer Derek Chauvin pinned his neck to the ground. The incident has resulted in protests both in Minneapolis and across the United States.
