Protesters demand more transparency and dramatic overhaul of public safety in NC
An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of Lauren Howell.
A group calling itself NC BORN, short for North Carolina Building Our Revolution Now, unveiled its demands on the 16th straight night of protest in Downtown Raleigh.
The demonstrations were sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. A police officer, recorded on video, knelt on Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes while he said he could not breathe and fell unconscious. Similar protests have rocked cities across the country, sparking a reckoning on policing and racism in many other aspects of American life.
NC BORN called for the dismantling of state and local law enforcement agencies, to be replaced with a series of task forces and community committees, and demanded full and transparent investigations of past police killings.
Organizer Taari Coleman said she wanted to be clear that she didn’t think Raleigh police were monsters.
“I’m not saying condemn these individuals,” she said. “I’m saying strip them of their power. We’re talking about arresting people who are murdering people.”
The group’s 12 for 12 initiative focuses on legislative action that would dramatically change the face of public safety in the state.
They want lawmakers to ban tear gas, rubber bullets, no-knock warrants, private prisons and prison labor.
Police, the group says, should not have lethal weapons. Instead, they should use de-escalation techniques.
NC BORN also demanded major improvements in transparency.
They want body camera footage of all interactions police have with the public.
Charges should be dropped in any case lacking complete video, the group said, and if an officer fails to turn on the body camera, they should be charged with a felony.
The group demanded transparent investigations into police killings by the State Bureau of Investigation, whose records are currently not public under state law.
“Without transparency, there’s inherently a lack of trust,” Coleman said.
A group of about 70 protesters walked from Nash Square to the North Carolina Executive Mansion chanting “abolish RPD” and “no justice, no peace.” It was a smaller crowd than on previous nights. On May 30, when the protests began, easily more than 1,000 people gathered.
Organizer Lauren Howell reminded the crowd that their demands were unmet and police killings had not stopped.
“A man was lynched yesterday by the police,” she said, referring to the death of Rayshard Brooks, who was shot while running away from officers in Atlanta.
Kerwin Pittman, a member Raleigh Demands Justice, another protest group, said he wasn’t concerned that crowds were dwindling. In fact, he said, organizers have encouraged people to rest.
“We understand that marching takes a lot of you,” Pittman said. “We know that this is a marathon and not a sprint. The point is to continually keep a presence out here.”
This story was originally published June 14, 2020 at 8:30 PM with the headline "Protesters demand more transparency and dramatic overhaul of public safety in NC."
