Lexington police reform has one easy answer: End the collective bargaining agreement.

2022 is approaching fast, and national-level policy positions are already hardening amongst activists on both sides, while local political parties are naturally left to push local political opinion in the direction their national party leans. Police issues have certainly been top of mind for many voters. A sign of the times, how a party’s voting base feels about support of the police has almost become the new Roe v. Wade. How did keeping our community safe ever become so controversial, and will voters ever agree on a way to ensure general safety in a community, while also ensuring civil rights are maintained? The national legislature has so far failed us, but locally, I believe there is a way.

Today’s status quo has police at the center of national controversy. The left is appalled at the human rights abuses we’ve seen, and the right has been just as appalled at cities burning on the national news. It’s likely uncontroversial, however, to say that over the past few years, the left has demonized the police to such a degree that it has forced the right to reflexively support law enforcement, come what may. As a reader, you may be a left-leaning individual wondering why conservatives are pro-police in the post-George Floyd environment. This is a fair question, and it’s societally useful to see the other side’s argument. From a conservative’s perspective, the left nationally has controversially tried to completely remove police from communities like Minneapolis; they supported rioters in Portland and elsewhere who physically attacked police officers’ eyes with lasers and physically thrown objects. There’s plenty more where that came from, but you get the picture.

In this environment, it’s no surprise that your stereotypical middle-class family has been shocked and concerned about their children’s safety. Consequently, creating a better tomorrow and protecting civil liberties has taken a back seat to the immediate need to ensure police are there to protect their families from lawless violence today, and it makes good political sense for the Republican Party writ large to be that voice for families in order to recapture the suburban vote lost in 2020.

So how do you stop these abuses in a polarized environment? It may surprise some to learn that the solution doesn’t have to be political. Some may be unaware that conflicting leadership exists within most local police departments. Due to this dual leadership issue, police chiefs often find their reform ideas confounded by police union leadership. Can or should voters support one, or both? First, the police management (i.e. the Chief) is democratically accountable to voters as they are generally appointed by a municipality’s mayor. If people are unhappy with the police, they can push the mayor to remove the chief or vote out the mayor if necessary. Unions are effectively lobbyists accountable only to themselves, and often take extreme positions. In Lexington, the union (FOP) in a shocking recent lawsuit effectively stated that police should make city law enforcement policy, not the voters’ elected representatives. If the lawsuit is successful, when police issues arise, this would essentially give the police veto power over Lexington’s elected leadership. The union has already destabilized the situation by targeting elected council members who voted against their wishes. I doubt the union wants their own members targeted that way. Chief Weathers however, like many city chiefs, is broadly popular.

Consequently, the only thing stopping effective police reform is not Democratic or Republican policies, but police unions stopping police management from implementing useful reforms and terminating bad officers. Removing unionization of the police shouldn’t be a difficult compromise for left and right to make. It ensures public safety needs are met, guarantees police reform through public accountability via the mayor’s office, and critical to democracy, guarantees voters are still in control at the ballot box.

Mayor Gorton and Council: Do what our national legislature failed to do; save public safety, save democracy, save our civil rights. Support the police, not police abuse. Now is the time to truly give Chief Weathers and subsequent chiefs control of the department, and protect the community by putting an end to the many dangers to democratic rule and civil rights inherent in FOP collective bargaining. Don’t end police reform, end the collective bargaining agreement.

Barry Saturday has served the Lexington community as a social studies teacher, financial advisor, past HOA President, and 2018 candidate for city council.

This story was originally published November 5, 2021 at 9:27 AM.