Kawana Scott, 27, was pulled over for expired car registration in 2018.
鈥淚 was searched. I cooperated. And upon the pat down, which was done by a male officer, he felt on my breast and I freaked out,鈥� Scott said.
Scott, who grew up in Dallas says she鈥檚 always felt police officers in the city targeted her for being Black. She remembers this particular incident when she was pulled over vividly. She was with her partner who is white and an officer asked her to get out of her car.
鈥淚 was handcuffed immediately,鈥� Scott said.
This incident and a previous arrest have fueled Scott鈥檚 fear of the police.
鈥淧eople should feel comforted by the presence of people that are supposed to protect them and they should not feel scared, because people are scared,鈥� Scott said.
But when Rene茅 Hall was hired as chief of the Dallas Police Department in 2017, Scott felt a sense of hope seeing a Black woman in a position of power.
Hall was a landmark hire for the city. She鈥檚 the first Black woman to run the Dallas Police Department.
Hall came from Detroit, Michigan, where she served as deputy chief. She arrived in Dallas just after her predecessor David Brown led the department through the aftermath of the that left five officers dead at a downtown Dallas protest. At the time, the police department was dealing with a number of problems, including low morale within the department, slow response rate to calls, lack of staffing and a city urging for progressive reforms.
"Rene茅 Hall has done nothing but maintain the status quo. "Kawana Scott, member of Dallas Alliance Against Racism And Political Oppression
鈥淩ene茅 Hall has done nothing but maintain the status quo,鈥� Scott said. 鈥淵ou would think because herself ... a person of color would make a difference, herself as a marginalized gender that would make a difference. But at the end of the day, the priority goes to law enforcement.鈥�
In 2019, with hope from Hall's appointment having dwindled, Scott joined . She鈥檚 been one of many, recently, who鈥檝e been critical of Chief Hall and her department's handling of recent protests.
鈥淲hy did we not see the pictures of the people who were not even part of the protest but were innocent bystanders who lost their eye walking by from rubber bullets鈥� Dallas City Council member said.
Bazaldua, who represents District 7, is referencing the 85-page that Dallas Police Department (DPD) recently released detailing the police's response to the first four days of protests in the city, May 29 to June 1, which followed George Floyd's death while during an arrest by Minneapolis police. Chief Hall led the assessment, and it acknowledged how DPD struggled with operational plans, communication and keeping a unified command structure.
Bazaldua said the report is, 鈥渇raming a defensive for litigation coming up.鈥� He doesn鈥檛 think the report fully laid out the mistakes and is asking for more transparency.
At a meeting after the report was released, six council members, including Bazaldua, expressed their frustration with the way police handled the protests and were critical of the chief's leadership during those days.
鈥淚 think that she has great intentions and is a great person but I believe that she puts too much importance in the political aspect of her job,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f we鈥檙e going to look toward progressive reform and aggressive change, it鈥檚 going to require a leader that is going to go against the fray, stand up when others aren鈥檛 willing to. I don鈥檛 know what it鈥檚 going to take to start to see that here in Dallas.鈥�
Dallas City Council members do not have the power to fire the chief of police. That personnel decision can only be made by City Manager T.C. Broadnax, who expressed his support for the chief in an interview with 四虎影院 in June.
鈥淭hese are tremendously difficult times. Not just for Chief Hall, I think for the entirety of the police department,鈥� Broadnax said. 鈥淚 think these times require us to think differently and to do better. And I know the Chief has committed to that. I鈥檓 committed with her to find ways to ensure DPD can do better related to how we police.鈥�
The city council and city manager are currently hammering out a budget for the next fiscal year. Wednesday they took a swing at their first attempt to set spending levels.
The Dallas social justice group (OCOF) is one of many activist groups asking for police defunding. OCOF has made a list of budget demands and is calling for a major cut to DPD's budget 鈥� $200 million. They would like this money to be redirected toward more social services.
Since activists call for defunding and reforms and the conversation around the police budget is coming after protests against police brutality, police officers are feeling immense pressure, Terrance Hopkins, president of the said.
鈥淚f I鈥檓 up here looking at the newspaper every day and it speaks negatively of the Dallas Police Department, who鈥檚 controlling my morale now?鈥� Hopkins said.
He feels criticism from city council members that zeros-in on the chief is unfair and thinks the city should focus on helping officers on the ground.
"Police work is done from the bottom up, not the top down. Boots on the ground get up and do this job every single day."Terrance Hopkins, president of the Black Police Association of Dallas
鈥淧olice work is done from the bottom up, not the top down. Boots on the ground get up and do this job every single day. What do they need? How can we make their jobs better?鈥� Hopkins said.
According to the police department, Chief Hall was not available for an interview, but they issued the following statement: 鈥淚n response to the first four days of protest, May 29 鈥� June 1, an After Action Report was completed and shared with the members of the city council and the public. The After Action Report is transparent, acknowledging what we did right and those things that we could have done differently.鈥�
Chief Hall did speak to 四虎影院 in 2017, right before she moved to Dallas to take over as chief.
鈥淚 think what we have to do and what I have seen that works, is that law enforcement has to be the mediator," Hall said then. "We have to be the lead in bringing the right people to address those concerns.
Which is something community activists like Sara Mokuria don鈥檛 think Hall鈥檚 done.
鈥淚f that does not reemphasize the need to deprioritize and defund the police and fund the community I don鈥檛 know what will,鈥� Mokuria said.
Mokuria, co-founder of , supports police defunding and says she鈥檚 lost faith in the department. She鈥檚 been advocating for more transparency and accountability. And although she鈥檚 been critical of the department and the chief, Mokuria said it鈥檚 not fair to lay all the blame on one person.
鈥淵ou can focus on the individual, the chief, and fire the chief and not change the system and the structure. But the issue is the system and the structure, not just the individual police chief,鈥� Mokuria said.
Throwing money at the police department has failed to keep Dallas neighborhoods safe, Mokuria said. She hopes the city invests police dollars into community support programs instead, and Dallas has the "courage" to make structural changes to the police force.
Got a tip? Alejandra Martinez is a corps member and writes about the economic impact of COVID-19 on marginalized communities for 四虎影院. Email Alejandra at amartinez@kera.org. You can follow Alejandra on Twitter .
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