August 3, 2016 The Skanner Page 11
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Simmons, RushCard Fund Program for Peace between Police and the Black Community
By Stacy M. Brown
(NNPA News Wire Con-
tributing Writer)
“
PHOTO COURTESY OF NOBLE
R
ussell Simmons is
as afraid of a con-
frontation with po-
lice as most other
Black men.
However, despite a re-
cent incident in which
he was pulled over by
cops in the Hamptons,
the RushCard co-founder
and music mogul is most
concerned about the re-
lationship between Afri-
can-Americans and law
enforcement.
“I have a healthy fear
[of being pulled over],”
said Simmons who was a
keynote speaker at a con-
vention of the National
Russell Simmons speaks at a convention of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives
in Washington, D.C.
The Peace Keepers are
also partnering with
NOBLE in an efort to
strengthen relationships
between the Black com-
look forward to partner-
ing with NOBLE to bring
law enforcement to the
table to build bridges
that will ultimately save
The other day I was pulled over in the Hamp-
tons and I was scared. I was really scared
Organization of Black
Law Enforcement Exec-
utives (NOBLE) in the na-
tion’s capital on July 19.
“The other day I was
pulled over in the Hamp-
tons and I was scared.
I was really scared,” he
said.
“There was a rabbi be-
hind me and [the oicer]
told the rabbi, ‘You go
ahead and keep it mov-
ing.’ I told the rabbi to
stay right here. I didn’t
think they were going
to abuse me, but I was
scared.”
Simmons
remarks
came ater recent tragic
events involving police
oicers and young Black
men in Baton Rouge, La.,
Falcon Heights, Minn.,
and Dallas, Texas.
At the NOBLE con-
ference, Simmons and
RushCard announced the
expansion of their part-
nership with The Peace
Keepers, a nonproit
whose goal is to main-
tain peace where gun vi-
olence is high and whose
mission is to bridge the
growing wedge between
law enforcement and the
African American com-
munity.
munity and law enforce-
ment.
Simmons spoke of
building stronger rela-
tionships between com-
munities and the police,
restoring
community
faith and trust in law en-
forcement.
He also discussed ways
to reduce community
deaths at the hands of
law enforcement as well
as methods to help elim-
inate violence towards
police oicers.
“My heart is broken
for the families of Al-
ton Sterling, Philando
Castile and the law en-
forcement oicers in
Dallas who senselessly
lost their lives,” Simmons
said.
“While I am saddened
and outraged, I realize
that throwing my hands
up in frustration won’t
accomplish anything,” he
said.
Simmons continued:
“RushCard is prepared
to help inance The Peace
Keepers and the valuable
work [The Peace Keepers
founder] Captain Dennis
Muhammad is doing in
communities through-
out the country. I also
lives.”
Muhammad, who also
attended the NOBLE
conference, said men in
particular and the com-
munity in general must
take responsibility to
help make their neigh-
borhood a decent and
safe place to live. That
also means working in
partnership with law en-
forcement, he said.
“However, due to the
recent national attention
of police misconduct and
controversial shootings
of young Black males, po-
lice and community rela-
tionship is at an all-time
low,” Muhammad said.
“The lack of trust and re-
spect with the police or
the ‘Them vs. Us’ is not
new. It goes all the way
back to the Civil Rights
era where we would
watch on TV police sick
the attack dogs, use ire
hoses, beat the marchers
with night sticks, and we
have also seen them use
the butt of their guns.
These images were seen
all across America and
let a bitter taste in the
mouths of Black Ameri-
cans across the country.”
Muhammad said that
we no longer view the
police as friends and
helpers, we see them as
foes or enemies.
“We need police, we
cannot live in a lawless
society. However, we
must not go backward,
but move forward and
not give up on building
a relationship of mutual
respect with the law en-
forcement community,”
said Muhammad.
Further, Simmons said
he sympathizes with
Black oicers who have a
tough job.
He said he wants to
build a bridge between
them and the communi-
ty and between the Black
oicers and their White
counterparts.
“We have 25 cities
where The Peace Keep-
ers are funded by Rush-
Card,” Simmons said.
“We want to work with
police, not only in pro-
tecting our community,
but building a bridge so
the future can be difer-
ent from where we are
today.”
Simmons continued,
“It’s obvious the Black
community has had trou-
ble with police for many
more years than we’ve
had iPhones.
Read the rest of this story at
TheSkanner.com
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