Prince William County leaders consider Cultural Diversity Commission

Protests over the killing of George Floyd continued throughout northern Virginia on Wednesday, and that includes demonstrators who have been on the move around the Woodbridge area.

There have been protests every day for the last several days since Saturday and most have been peaceful and constructive, but not all.

The sentiment is the same echoed across the country — against excessive police force and brutality.

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By all accounts, the conversation must continue and Prince William County Board Supervisor Margaret Franklin hopes to do just that.

The protests will undoubtedly continue for many days to come but beyond that, in the last 24 hours, Franklin is proposing the county create a cultural diversity commission.

The diversity commission's goal is to reportedly examine race relations across the county.

Franklin’s proposal was approved unanimously yesterday.

She says it’s important for everyone to gain a deeper understanding of the issues.

Police share that belief, telling FOX 5 they plan to share their escalation and deescalation policies with the community, acknowledging the George Floyd tragedy hurts the relationship nationwide between the community and police.

Thankfully, Prince William County Police have not, for the most part, experienced a controversial encounter like what we’re hearing about in so many other jurisdictions, but they also know now is not the time to become complacent.

Police say they plan to continue their current circular model which calls for police to continually assess an encounter, lead to more community talks between community leaders and police, plus continue citizen advisory board.
 

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