(As submitted by Not In Our Town BG)
Not In Our Town BG stands with all who grieve following the deaths in Tulsa and Charlotte last week. We also witness to the deep feelings of anger, frustration and fear that these events have generated among people of color and others here in Bowling Green and on campuses and in communities around the country.
One of our NIOT cornerstones remains our commitment both to truth-telling and to improving the relations of our BG and BGSU police with the Bowling Green community at large. We continue to support “coffee with cops” events, and we highlight the coming community/police conversation called “It’s Just Us: Real Talk with Real Cops.” This will take place Friday Oct. 14 in the theater (room 206) of BGSU’s Bowen Thompson Student Union at 6 p.m. There is no overstating the importance of open and honest communication with and by our officers, particularly involving those who have reason to be fearful due to current and past events.
The tragedies of last week underscore the value of the cooperation and the partnership of the two police departments with NIOT-BG since our origin. But they also show that we in Bowling Green must continue with the hard work required to reject prejudice and violence in our town, and to become a community in which all people are not just included but are respected and safe.
