Alexandria Town Hall, Protest Start Conversations About Race

ALEXANDRIA, VA — A virtual town hall and peaceful protest were held Tuesday evening in Alexandria after the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.

The virtual town hall, held by ACT for Alexandria on Zoom and Facebook Live, is the first of town halls geared toward discussing systemic racism's impact on Alexandria. The event maxed out at 1,000 participants on Zoom, and others watched on Facebook Live.

The town hall began with a moment of silence in memory of Floyd before remarks from city officials, police and Sen. Mark Warner, and discussions with community participants. The event was moderated by Jacqueline Tucker, the Alexandria's first race and social equity officer in the city manager's office.

During the forum, members of the black community in Alexandria shared their reactions to the deaths of George Floyd and other black individuals. One common thread was that racial injustice continues to be unaddressed after each death.

Gregory Hutchings Jr., superintendent of Alexandria City Public Schools, says he and others are "fed up" with seeing no change after these kinds of incidents.

"The unfortunate piece is that this validates what...many African Americans have to suppress all the time," said Hutchings. "I use myself as an example. In order to live each day and not be able to not wake up angry and enraged I have to suppress certain feelings and experiences that I've had because of the color of my skin. And I think when we have issues like this that are nationally recognized, it brings those feelings that you've had to suppress just to survive, out."

Joyce Rawlings, a community and educational activist, compared the deaths of George Floyd and other black individuals to pulling off a scab when the wound begins to heal. She expressed frustration that riots get attention, but that attention doesn't turn into real change. On the role of community in addressing systemic racism, she says individuals need to do more.

"As we talk about racism, as we bring it forward, bring it in the light, we must check ourselves," said Rawlings. "We must look in that mirror and see what we as individuals are or not doing. Do we make jokes about race?...Do we make jokes and laugh at them in the presence of something that you know is absolutely wrong?...What are we teaching our children?"

Alexandria Council Member John Taylor Chapman believes police should be held to a high standard, and that doesn't always happen.

"The ongoing videos and incidents with police officers need to stop. Law enforcement, I don't believe, is not one of those areas where mistakes can be made," said Chapman.

Benny Evans, an officer with the Alexandria Police Department, said it's sometimes difficult to put on the police uniform when law enforcement is perceived negatively. But he looks at the issue from two sides: as a police officer and as a black man.

"This is not a police department issue, this is not a sheriff's office issue," said Evans. "This is a bad person that became a cop and was involved in a system of failure. Our entire system needs to be looked at, and it starts from our criminal justice system all the way through."

Police Chief Michael Brown also addressed participants, promising he will look for opportunities to "fix things." He said writing his statement in response to Floyd's killing was difficult, because he sees frustration about lack of changes to policing and how African Americans are treated. But he believes tackling racial injustice needs to involve more than just the police department.

"I want us to be able as a community, and not just as a policing field but all of us, to find ways that we don't have to see this again," said Brown. "There's nothing that's perfect, and certainly policing isn't. It's a messy business...but there's no excuse for what we witnessed on that video. Those four officers in my book should have been arrested and taken to jail."

The police chief and officers also engaged with demonstrators at a Tuesday evening protest outside police headquarters on Wheeler Avenue. The department tweeted photos from the event and said police had "much-needed conversations" with attendees. The event remained peaceful, according to Alexandria Living Magazine.