Lawmakers in Michigan city push for regulation of biased 911 calls in response to #LivingWhileBlack

Lawmakers in Michigan city push for regulation of biased 911 calls in response to #LivingWhileBlack
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Lawmakers in a Michigan city are considering a measure to criminalize the act of using a 911 call as a method of discrimination against people of color.

A summary of an ordinance under consideration in Grand Rapids, Mich., would make "it a criminal misdemeanor to racially profile people of color for participating in their lives" by reporting them for crimes when they have done nothing wrong.

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The provision also would add methods for residents of color to report biased behavior to city authorities, according to the summary. A Grand Rapids official told The Washington Post, which first reported the ordinance, that the measure was meant to caution citizens to question their own biases before making a criminal complaint.

“If you’re in a park or see someone coming through the neighborhood who doesn’t look like you, check your bias before you call the police,” Patricia Caudill, the city’s diversity and inclusion manager, told the Post.

"The ordinance declares that it is contrary to the public policy of the City of Grand Rapids for any person to deny any individual the enjoyment of civil rights, or for any person to discriminate against any individual in the exercise of civil rights because of actual or perceived color, race, religion or creed, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genotype, age, marital status, medical condition, disability, height, weight, or source of lawful income(cumulatively known as protected classes)," the ordinance's summary reads.

The ordinance comes after the hashtag "#LivingWhileBlack" trended last summer on Twitter after a barbecue being held by mostly black Grand Rapids residents had police called by neighbors who supposedly complained about the noise despite the party having legal permits.

Photos of the confrontation with law enforcement prompted other black Americans to post similar stories on social media of times when white people have called the police on them for innocuous activities.