As a member of the Faith Coalition for the Common Good s Transformative Justice (TJ) Task Force, I have worked with other members to oppose the militarization of Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell s law enforcement operations, and in particular the sheriff s planned acquisition of a military vehicle.
The TJ Task Force believes that law enforcement works best when it acts respectfully toward the community it serves. The plain purpose of a military vehicle, however, is to intimidate individuals and the public at large. The task force agrees with the majority of Americans on this issue, who responded to a recent poll by saying that militarization of community law enforcement has gone too far. Even though the sheriff says he wouldn t use the vehicle against peaceful protestors, I ve participated in political rallies, and the prospect of encountering a tank-like vehicle is frightening.
Photo by Bruce Rushton Flanked by Vanessa Knox of the Faith Coalition For The Common Good and Nick Dodson of the Sierra Club and Sangamon County Democratic Socialists of America, Susan Allen, a member of the Faith Coalition, tells the press that the sheriff s office shouldn t get an armored vehicle. A coalition of groups ranging from Black Lives Matter to Planned Parenthood is demanding that Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell cancel plans to acquire an armored vehicle. The sheriff s department doesn t need a surplus military vehicle that can withstand mine blasts and is impervious to bullets from high-powered rifles, representatives of 13 groups said at a press conference outside the sheriff s office this week
2 hours ago in Local Photo: Saga Communications
Leaders from thirteen community organizations, including the Faith Coalition for the Common Good, rallied outside the Sangamon County Complex to protest the sheriff’s department’s planned acquisition of an Army surplus armored vehicle (also called an M-RAP).
M-RAP stands for a “Mine-Resistant, Ambush Protected” vehicle.
Sheriff Jack Campbell says he’s aware of concerns over optics, but there are things this vehicle can do that others can’t. It’s for the protection of the community, indicated the Sheriff, not to intimidate it that’s behind the acquisition of an M-RAP.
Campbell plans to use seized assets funds from drug dealers and the like to pay for getting the M-RAP to Springfield, thereby leveraging past criminality to finance future policing.