Chief answers Rashidah's Questions

Sometimes meetings intending to foster inclusion and diversity do what they are intended to do. Today the Human Relations Commission of the City of Clarksville held their long awaited A Seat at the Table luncheon on the campus of Austin Peay University. Because some clever organizer selected a brilliant young black woman to host a table, Police Chief Al Rivers Ansley was able to share his thoughts with a group of us about what were the things that keep him up at night.

There were nine of us around a table built for eight, and the talk we were witness to tugged on that knot in all our stomachs around policing and the black/brown community in a tenuous but somewhat productive way. There was no sword of Damocles brought down to break through this tangle of feelings and memories and data and trainings and tough times in front of the press, but there was some movement toward more mutual understanding.

Chief Ansley said three times if he said it once, that he could talk all day. He said, about as many times, that there was a lot of blame through association inherent in being police and that he figured that was because people did not have enough information to appreciate the tough place police are in right now. When asked whether his force was trained to bear the brunt of public outrage or criticism, he said “we have been training that for years now.”

Our accidental interviewer was Rashidah Leverett, a bright and curious doctoral student and obviously proud godmother to our table host. She asked questions directly, politely, engagingly and progressively deeper. The Chief started out cautiously and to his credit, walked slowly out into difficult subjects in a thoughtful way, reassured that Ms. Leverett was listening, understanding him and wanting to hear his point of view.

The Chief was the first to pull on the knot of race relations with the police when he said “Several years ago, when Ferguson happened, that was tough on us. We all wear the uniform and the decisions of a police anywhere in the country reflects on all of us, no matter where we are. We held a meeting at (___) Elementary School and I showed up to answer any and all questions about my department, but I felt a bit hung out to dry when the County Sheriff didn’t show.” He went on to say that he would meet with anyone and answer any questions today. It is his way to be straightforward.

Rashidah, perhaps acknowledging whatever discomfort was coming up or maybe because it fit into her dissertation, asked the Chief “With such a stressful job, what forms of self-care do you use?” He cracked a pained grin and answered quickly “None. I mean, I like to stay physically fit. But this job ages me. I have been on the force for 24 years. The toughest thing I ever faced was a deadly force investigation. It is the toughest thing any police face. I try to keep fit. I work out but mostly, I just take it.”

More people came back to the table with their plates filled with dishes from Jamaica and the Dominican Republic and Korea and other exotic places, but no one interrupted.

It was just Rashidah and the Chief and he “could talk all day”. Rashidah asked something like “What is your strategy to address the tension between the black community and the police.” Here, to the best of my memory, is what the Chief said - not verbatim, but I think I caught the gist:

It all starts with hiring the right people. That is not as easy as it seems. They can come to the force as early as 21 and that is pretty young to be police. He has fired a number of staff, including people who have family on the force. He doesn’t want to have to do that but he can’t tolerate any behavior that can compromise the safety of the community or his people.

Some of the one’s he has had to let go because they acted like cowboys. They aren’t the police he wants or who he thinks the community wants. Lying is another firing offense. Lying in a professional sense, he explained. He doesn't mean like if he saw someone out with Jane but they were supposed to be out with someone else, but lying in a professional situation is unacceptable. He has the power to take away your freedom. With that he will give testimony under oath that may put you in prison. He can’t have his agency take the hit to their integrity and trust so no lying.

When he started looking at whether Clarksville was hiring in a way that reflects the demographics of the City, he had a pretty low number of women and people of color. Their force is now 17% women and he thinks that is pretty good compared to other forces. Clarksville's black community is about 25% and the Hispanic community is about 9%. His staffing representation is not there yet but he says they have improved.

He gave an example. There is a new recruit (I assumed a black male although he never says this explicitly) who grew up here in Clarksville, is educated, good in every way. When he considers the dangers of the job, he knows what they are, and what a new cop makes (it gets better down the road), he doesn't have a very good chance of keeping him. If his new recruit wants to go to the FBI he can write his own way. He also lost three women who had to move when their husbands got orders, so even if he gets great people it is sometimes hard to keep them.

But the best thing he can do is get good people to start with and not have any room for sloppy behavior. You never have to treat a person with disrespect, never in any situation. And that is how we make it better. With the power to take one’s freedom comes the responsibility to be honest, respectful and have integrity.

Then one of our table mates, a former candidate for judge, asked “Did you ever catch the person that burnt that cross?” Perhaps there is a flicker of recognition of an old wound between these two but I missed it. The Chief explained as patiently as he could that the Clarksville Police offered a reward from the Confidential Informant account, which he felt was the most likely way to get an arrest. But, even with the offer of a reward, no one came forward.

The citizen/lawyer countered that she did not think that all the full power of forensic science was brought to bear in this case. Maybe the origin of the wood, grass clippings, something the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation might have found could have triggered a lead. The Chief said that had they hauled the charred remains of the cross to the evidence room it would still be there and there would, in his experience, still be no suspects.

While walking out with my new friend who asked about this local hate crime, she shared that in the absence of justice, she was leaning on the theory that it was done by a young person (I assume a white male, although she never said) who belonged to someone with the influence to make the investigation go away. She has felt that way for a while and today’s conversation had not changed her mind.

Still, in all that, there was some common ground. All people want to be understood, respected and listened to … even if we can’t get to agreement on all matters. I did not sense the Chief wanted burning crosses in Clarksville or his force to be sideways with the people of color he is charged to keep safe. He does not want a bunch of “cowboys” policing his City and neither did the folks at our table. He is feeling the stress of the time and so are we.

I wrote this up as a tribute to the people of Clarksville who long dreamed to host a luncheon celebrating diversity and modeling inclusion that could lead to this discussion, of which I only got down a small portion. The event did not sever us from the knot of racism or bad policing or community duplicity or white supremacy.

But it made it alright to talk about it … and anyone who has worked a 12 step will tell you that the first thing you need to get well is to admit you have a problem. Then you need to sit around a room and share your hopes and experiences and help one another back to health. Those are some deep core values in action don’t you think? A seat at the table and the table is round.