Reading (Monday’s) front-page article on the police forums, maybe it would be more helpful for citizens attending the forums to tell their stories first and ask the police officers to work on finding common ground with them.
Quoting from a book called “Faith Works” by Jim Wallis, who has worked in DC for years addressing the needs of people with no food, no housing, and no work: “Many good and decent programs didn’t become highly successful until the poor (I hate that word - it’s so impersonal) themselves are given a real hearing and became involved in their leadership. Their presence in the discussion makes all the difference. ... The three principles for solving the country’s worse societal problems are: One — trust those closest to the problem. Two — trust those closest to the problem. Three — trust those closest to the problem.”