I am in full support of an Intersectional Safety Taskforce. We need to consider as a city a more inclusive definition of safety, as we have often fallen victim to the exclusive definition that has hurt Lakewood residents and have given the city of Lakewood a bad reputation in regards to racial diversity. An Intersectional Safety Taskforce can begin to amend this harmful, hurtful history.

I fully support the positions outlined in the ARTF memo. Community-based solutions are proving to be effective in addressing violence in towns across the US. Lakewood’s tradition of resident engagement combined with intentionally re:inclusion of historically marginalized populations of color suggests that we are well-positioned to have productive discussions related to safety/race/policing.

I am out of town but hope to be able to participate in tonight’s meeting. In any case, I want to lend my full support to the recommendations of the Anti-Racism Task Force.