Reporting by Cesar Canizales

Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz attended a student-led town hall about gun violence at Rainier Beach High School Wednesday. The forum took place just a week after the school held a town hall about the subject that saw no police representatives to listen to students and community members. 

One of the students who attended last week’s town hall told the chief why it was important for the police to listen to her concerns.

“We can’t trust you, and it's not you as a person. You did nothing to me. But I see you, and I have a fear in my heart,” said Daleceana Fudge-Minnie, a Rainier Beach High School student who spoke at last week’s town hall. “Because, you know, my friends out here look like people in history that have been shot,” 

Last Thursday, the police department was called out for not attending the town hall. Chief Diaz apologized to the students and staff who attended Wednesday’s forum.

Diaz listened to the students talk about their fears and concerns—and their proposed solutions.

“Our lives are at risk outside the school house sometimes. Maybe if you go home. In our neighborhoods and even when the police this over. ‘Yes, sir. No, sir. Hands on the wheel, don't even really make direct eye contact because you don't know what you might be looking for,’” said Caleb Presley, a Rainier Beach High School Student. “It is a dangerous game that we call life. This is what we have to go through as African American males in our community.”

Nijawn Sterling, a Rainier Beach student, told Diaz that what is missing is having officers trying to build relationships. 

“Have an officer, you know, be here, be around here in support for the people, not just sitting in their car, you know, but actually getting to know students,” Sterling said.

Jeremiah White, a Rainier Beach High School sophomore, said what is needed is guidance.  

“You know, everybody messes up and everybody makes mistakes. But the thing we need to focus on is everybody learning from their mistakes so we could change the problems. But I feel like we need more guidance, for sure.”

One of the panelists, Mario Clark, a student at the school, asked how many people had experienced violence or knew people who had, and asked for a show of hands. Several people in the audience raised their hands. 

Clark asked if anyone would like to share their story, and Nasumie Hart, a student, shared her traumatic experience of a shooting after a party, which was caused by a fight. She said after that fight, she and her friends saw a person at a nearby park with a gun in his hand. She said she was scared and saw people fleeing.

“I'm like, scared to death because I'm one of those kids. I don't really go out. It was just the thing to do with friends, but it was like my most scariest [sic] moment because I'm over here running for my life, and the bullets just drop. I hear people scream,” Hart said.

Chief Diaz said he is aware that there has been an explosion in gun violence in recent years.

“When I actually look at shootings over the last three years--we were roughly at about 300 shootings a year. We are double that. We were over 730 shootings last year alone. That's what’s happening in our community. So that's where you're talking about.”

The chief said part of the solution is training new officers to get more acquainted with the community to build relationships and gain trust. He said there are hundreds of recruits in the academy now, and the department is working with them.

“Getting them to actually know you--and then getting you to get to know them, too, as officers. Getting them to understand both of each other, the experience of what made them, what drew them into being a police officer, and then also what your experience is in this community,” Diaz said. “And I think that that would actually go a long way before we ever have to have that interaction with them on the streets.”

  

Some of the students said their parents didn’t have to deal with the effect of social media, and how sometimes gangs and violence are glorified. 

“What's cool on social media is ‘I'm go out and kill somebody’ online to get my life back. Oh, I need to go to this. I need to go to that,” Caleb Presley said. “And they cause violence in my community. We’ve already had enough trauma already. When are we going to start seeking help and when are we going to start looking for change?”

After the town hall, Diaz talked about some of the things he learned.

“It’s a lot of great information. It’s so important to listen to the youth voice. I’ve actually been doing a lot of work in the community for many, many years—over a decade,” Diaz said. “And hearing from the community, and hearing from the young people about what’s impacting them, the trauma that they’re experiencing, we need to be listening. We need to figure out the solutions.”