LOCAL

NAACP discusses racial bias, community policing

Steven Barnum
Voice Correspondent

McDONOUGH COUNTY — Policing procedures was the main theme during this month’s virtual McDonough County NAACP meeting.

Branch President Byron Oden-Shabazz shared local policing stats that he believes could indicate the existence of racial bias. The data, which the branch obtained from the Macomb Police Department, shows that 396 of the individuals stopped by police in 2019 were white, while 326 of them were black. The total number of stops, which included other demographics, was not given.

To add perspective, Oden-Shabazz said that white people make up about 85 percent of Macomb’s population and black people make up about 8 percent. Sterling Saddler, Assistant to the President for Diversity and Inclusion at Western Illinois University, said that there are roughly 15,000 white people in the community and 1,342 black people.

“The numbers are not surprising but they’re very one-sided and it also means there’s a possibility of racial profiling,” Saddler said. “It’s definitely skewed and it’s disproportionate so we’d like to have some answers and see whether or not we can work this out.”

Belinda Carr, Chair of the Democratic Committee in McDonough County, vouched support for ‘community policing’. Carr said that the term describes a policing structure where officers make an effort to interact with members of the community in a positive manner.

“Police used to walk beats; they don’t do that anymore. Police in Macomb used to ride bicycles; they don’t do that anymore,” Carr said. “So the public only sees them by and large in their patrol vehicle, and usually only interact with them when there is a problem. Community policing puts the police and the community together in times other than stress.”

Carr said that this approach to policing has been absent in Macomb for almost two decades.

“The police, themselves, fought community policing to the nail; they did not like it,” Carr said. “But it (community policing) would help build trust in the community.”

Oden-Shabazz said that he will assemble a committee made of NAACP members who will be tasked with speaking with local police about their concerns with the data.

“Ultimately, we are going to have to address those numbers with the police department,” he said.

Email editor@mcdonoughvoice.com with comments or questions on this story.