PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — On the second anniversary of the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a now-fired, convicted and incarcerated Minneapolis police officer, President Joe Biden signed an executive order to address police accountability and the public trust.
Some community leaders in Philadelphia and South Jersey expressed support for the move Wednesday, while others who held a vigil for Floyd at Philadelphia City Hall Wednesday evening demanded even greater change.
“It’s unfortunate that George Floyd had to die such an unfortunate and untimely death to kick off this kind of movement,” said NAACP Atlantic City President Kaleem Shabazz. “President Biden has shown great sensitivity and leadership.”
Biden’s limited action reflected the challenges in addressing racism, excessive use of force, and public safety with a deadlocked Congress.
Most of the order issued Wednesday is focused on federal law enforcement agencies. Part of the order requires them to review and revise policies on the use of force, mandating the adoption of body-worn camera policies, restricting chokeholds, and other deadly restraints for federal officers.
The order will also create a database to help track officer misconduct, with some similarities to Pennsylvania’s law enforcement database.
Related
The administration cannot require local police departments to participate in the database, which is intended to prevent problem officers from job-hopping. The order also restricts the flow of surplus military equipment to local police.
Urban League of Philadelphia President and Chief Executive Officer Andrea Custis praised the steps Biden took with the executive order, as it comes amidst the growing number of deaths at the hands of law enforcement.
In 2020 and 2021, more than 2,000 people were killed by law enforcement officers, according to the Washington Post.
“You’ve seen the chokeholds. You’ve seen the abusive behavior by officers and the killing of individuals. It has to stop. We’ve had those conversations here in Philadelphia,” said Custis.
Related
“We have been talking about the 21 pillars for redefining public safety and restoring public trust probably for the last two years, so I’m glad President Biden is signing this executive order.”
The National Urban League's 21 Pillars involve five goals they say can change public safety: Accountability, changes to divisive policing policies, collaboration with communities to build a restorative policing system, demands for transparency, reporting and data collection, and improvement of hiring standards and training.
Custis shared particular praise about the executive order’s mandates for body-worn cameras by federal officers.
“We have seen over and over in all parts of the country that we get two different views,” said Custis.
Related
“The victim says this is what happened, the officer said this. When you have a body camera, it takes away all of that back and forth.”
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw was part of a small group that gave feedback to the administration on the executive order.
“I appreciate the thoughtfulness that went into this, the focus on officer wellness, and ultimately just acknowledging that when you achieve accountability, we’re improving the trust between our relationships,” said Outlaw.
“Enough is enough”
Labor leaders and community members joined together for a vigil Wednesday afternoon at Philadelphia City Hall for Floyd. A few dozen people came together, remembering Floyd with a moment of silence, and other moments of passionate words demanding change.
“If we don't stand up and say 'Enough is enough,' who is going to stand up and say, 'Enough is enough?' one speaker asked.
"What happened on that day struck my soul,” said Wendell Royster, one of the founders of the Philadelphia Labor for Black Lives Coalition.
“When I say struck my soul, it hit me in a way that just complaining wasn't enough. Trying to just gather and do some more marching wasn't enough."
Black leaders, unions, and community members gathered not only to remember Floyd but share conversations about police transparency, including Pennsylvania’s Act 57 which Gov. Tom Wolf signed into law in 2020.
The act requires the Pennsylvania Municipal Police Officers’ Education and Training Commission to create a database of the records of officers’ departures from police, sheriffs, and other law enforcement departments.
The act also forces law enforcement agencies to hold “a thorough background investigation on an applicant, including a review of the applicant's employment information and separation records.” The database allows agencies to clearly see if an officer has been fired from previous employment.
Wolf signed Act 57 into law 52 days after Floyd’s death.
Related
"We have to make sure that their hiring practices match the ones that we have to deal with on a regular basis,” said another speaker at the event.
"I don't ever want to forget what happened, and that we need to continue to bring attention to gun violence and police brutality,” said Nina Coffey, part of a group of members of the Service Employees International Union who joined the vigil.
"I've got a little one who's hopefully going to be in a better world than we currently are, so we have to work for him and all those like him,” said Lance Biggs, who attended with his 3-year-old boy.
The theme of needed change also came for vigil attendees Wednesday from the aftermath of 19 children and two adults killed in a mass shooting Tuesday in Uvalde, Texas, and 10 Black people shot and killed in what authorities believe is a race-based hate crime at a supermarket in Buffalo earlier this month.
Related
"After what I've seen yesterday, and then what we've seen last week in the supermarket in New York … the force and the power of the people is happening,” said Royster.
“But do we think America is moving forward? I don't."
Yet as those at the vigil heard the words of Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come,” others saw Biden’s actions as a step toward that change.
“I am very pleased,” said Shabazz. "I hope that this is just the first step so that we can report, hopefully on May 25 of next year, that there has been substantial progress made in police activity in communities of color.”
For more from KYW Newsradio:
- Download the Audacy App
- Listen live
- Listen on your smart speaker