Last week’s NAACP-sponsored community forum on race relations has started a healthy discussion in Springfield. Once again it has raised the subject of minority hiring in the police department. Mayor Mike Houston promised to tackle the issue when he was elected three years ago, but it has proven too difficult for this administration. It is hard to reform the testing procedure, we’re told, and the requirement for a four-year degree gets in the way, and salaries are too low to attract top recruits. The problems are stated but not addressed, so nothing changes. Other police agencies are finding ways to overcome obstacles and get the job done. Doing so requires persistent and determined leadership, which is the missing ingredient here. –Fletcher Farrar, editor and publisher
This article appears in Sep 11-17, 2014.
