Members of the community activist group All of Us occupied every single entrance of Schenectady City Hall on Monday, urging the city to honor a list of police and justice social reforms.
"We presented 13 demands to the mayor and chief,” said All of Us organizer Jamaica Miles.
What You Need To Know
- Community activist group All of Us urges city to honor list of 13 demands
- The city updated its restraint polices days after Yugeshwar Gaindarpersaud's controversial arrest
- The group says they won't stop until all demands are met
Tension has grown over what protesters call a constant disregard for communities of color by police. The latest controversial arrest of Yugeshwar Gaindarpersaud has fanned the flames. Officer David Pommer used his knee on Gaindarpersaud's head and neck area to restrain him.
“We have been waiting 400 years for justices, and something needs to be done. That means all choke holds, strangle holds, and hogties are banned by the Schenectady Police Department,” said Miles.
Days after Gaindarpersaud's arrest and subsequent protests, the city updated its police restraint policies to include prohibiting officers from using knees on a suspect's neck as a use of a control.
The policy also requires patrol supervisors to approve “warrantless arrest” and more de-escalation training among Schenectady officers.
Organizers say defunding the police department and redirecting the resources to the community is another option.
Those are just some of the 13 demands the activist group is looking for to end police brutality, and they say they won’t stop until all demands are met.