Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) is standing by his position on not wanting to abolish the police department despite calls do to so.
During a CNN interview on Monday evening, Frey discussed being confronted by demonstrators over the past weekend. The mayor was booed in Minneapolis after he said he would not support getting rid of the police department.
“My rule of thumb throughout has been be open, be honest, be transparent, and so, yes, I came outside, I sat down with the protest and they called me up and asked me if was willing right there to commit to getting rid of the police, and I was honest,” he said.
The mayor continued:
“If we’re talking about massive cultural shift in the way our police department does business, I’m on board. If we’re talking about major structural reform that pushes back on the horrid nature of how our police departments have treated black and brown communities, I am fully on board. But if we’re talking about abolishing the entire police department, I was honest, that’s not where I am.”
Watch Frey’s interview below:
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey discusses the incident caught on video in which protesters told him to "go home" after he declined to commit to abolish the city's police department.
— Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) June 9, 2020
"I was honest. That's not where I am." https://t.co/mn9hyrIYY6 pic.twitter.com/gLSWKEI4ZM
Frey’s recent remarks come after Minneapolis city council members vowed to disband the police department, as IJR previously reported. This follows as protests have erupted across the country over the last two weeks for justice following the death of George Floyd.
Minneapolis City Council president on the push to disband its police dept.:
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) June 9, 2020
"Our community has been through a lot of watching us make promises and make changes. And then to see George Floyd killed in that horrific way … with 4 members of the dept. involved—it's just too much." pic.twitter.com/faBIQlAdH0
“They’re right to be angry and sad and upset,” Frey later added during the CNN interview. “I mean let’s be very real here, George Floyd was murdered by one of our police officers. We need to recognize that and acknowledge it, but the next step is to harness all of that energy and anger and sadness that we have and commit to real-time, real reforms.”
Frey previously noted that he wants to work with Minneapolis Police Department Chief Medaria Arradondo “toward deep, structural reform and addressing systemic racism in police culture” but, “I do not support abolishing the Minneapolis Police Department.”
