Division of Public Safety officials met with student leaders last night in a forum that gave both sides the opportunity to publicly air their views on police encounters with minorities and the difficulty of policing the University area.
The forum was held in light of recent allegations that several students, including College senior Dimitri Dube, had been stopped by officers based, at least in part, on their race.
On Jan. 19, Dube was reportedly stopped by plainclothes officers on his way home from the 7-Eleven at 42nd and Walnut streets. Dube said he was previously asked to leave the 7-Eleven at 38th and Chestnut streets by officers who claimed the store clerks wanted him out. Dube has alleged that the stop was racially motivated.
Public Safety officials and representatives from several minority groups met on Jan. 22 to discuss the incident and agreed at that meeting to hold an open forum at a later date.
"How do police officers police a very difficult environment?" Vice President for Public Safety and panelist Maureen Rush asked at last night's forum.
"It's a challenge for minority students and a challenge for police," she added.
Panelists said they were eager for the forum to be open and constructive and for both officials and students to emerge with a better understanding of each other.
"We're trying to get an open dialogue established between Penn Police and the community," Dube said. "What are your rights? What are the police's rights?"
Several members of campus minority groups have claimed that Dube's encounter was not an isolated incident, but that other students were not aware of the procedure to lodge a complaint.
"The complaint process is not as widely known as it is meant to be," Chief of Police Tom Rambo admitted. "I think we need to do a better job of getting this out."
Students took the opportunity to deliver their own stories of police encounters. Asian Pacific Student Coalition Chairwoman Eugena Oh and United Minorities Council Political Chairman Shaun Gonzales, both College juniors, read statements from students claiming they had previously been stopped by police for matching vague descriptions of suspects, with no apology given to them afterwards.
As College junior Iman Martin said, it would make a less painful experience if officers "took a minute to say I'm sorry."
"I've had encounters with police at off-campus parties that are not analogous to white parties," College senior Jaron Shipp added. "Police have come into my house without asking -- one time the door was kicked open."
Rambo tried to give students the police perspective, as he related an incident in which officers stopped a black male who matched a description of a criminal. After being stopped, the man pulled out out a gun.
"You can't always ask someone to show their hands," Rambo said. Police officers "also want to get back to their families."
While students and officials were able to air some grievances, some thought the forum lacked constructive debate.
"It was disappointing that none of the beat officers were here," Shipp said.
"I thought the police testimony was enlightening and interesting, [but] I would have liked to see more dialogue," Oh added.
However, many students said they thought the forum established a firm foundation for further developments.
"There will be a continuation of dialogue... more talk on [a] civilian review board," Gonzales said.
"I think it was a good first step," added UMC Chairman Papa Wassa Nduom, a College sophomore. "High-ups in the police department now know how students feel about police."
