DALLAS – The Millions More Movement, to be highlighted by a huge gathering this Saturday on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., promises to come up with bold strategies to transform America by eliminating poverty and injustice.

Organizers recognize the limitations of previous efforts and say they are determined to help produce a lasting movement this time, not a one-day event (In the interest of full disclosure, I am scheduled to speak at the Millions More Movement on Saturday). Of course, we’ve heard similar promises before, only to be disappointed. Maybe this time will be different.

Leaders should take a look at what the Texas State Conference of NAACP Branches did last weekend in Dallas. They sponsored a program called “An Evening with George Curry and Company.” My company was Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez, Travis County Sheriff Gregory Hamilton and Diop Kamau (an ex-policeman formerly known as Don Jackson), executive director of the Police Complaint Center in Washington, D.C.

Gary L. Bledsoe, president of the NAACP state conference, and Bob Lydia, president of the Dallas branch, the host chapter, arranged for me to speak 15 minutes and then moderate a conversation with my “company.”

I’ve moderated countless debates, town hall meetings and panels, and few, if any were as effective or informative as this one. What made it different was that rather than have panelists compete to see who could give the most colorful description of the problem, Bledsoe and Lydia insisted that after I presented a national overview of police misconduct, our conversation would focus on what could and should be done to address the problem.

A report by the Human Rights Report states:
“Police abuse remains one of the most serious and divisive human rights violations in the United States. The excessive use of force by police officers, including unjustified shootings, severe beatings, fatal choking, and rough treatment, persists because overwhelming barriers to accountability made it possible for officers who commit human rights violations to escape due punishment and often repeat their offenses.”
Those words came to life when Kamu showed a videotape of his various investigations catching police in the act of racially profiling drivers, telling lies and attempting to intimidate those asking questions about how to file a police complaint. In one scene, an officer demands to see the identification of a man who only asked questions about the process. When the man hesitated, the officer began reaching for his revolver.

Kamu’s mistreatment at the hands of police was videotaped and shown all over the nation. An officer grabs him by the neck and crashes his head into a glass window.

I wanted to first focus on preventing police brutality, at least to the extent that we can. I pointed out to the audience moreso than to my company on stage that if a police officer requests to search an individual or his or her vehicle, the driver does not have to consent to the search.

Sheriff Valdez laughed.

She said that while that is true, she was quick to recommend that even if the officer proceeds with the search without permission, be cooperative. That doesn’t mean people have to be powerless. Note the time and the officer’s name and badge number and later file a written complaint. If a particular officer keeps getting complained about, at least the administration would have been alerted that they have a problem officer.

Sheriff Hamilton argued that the only way to get rid of the problem is to fire abusive cops. But that is made difficult, Valdez said, because cops subscribe to a code of silence. “Cops don’t rat on other cops,” she explained.

But the problem is even deeper.

In 1992, Gannett News Service examined 100 civil lawsuits that had been filed against police officers in 22 states. In each instance, awards of $100,000 or more were made to victims between 1986 and 1991; the total was nearly $92 million. Of the 185 officers involved in the cases, no disciplinary action was taken against 160, eight were disciplined and 17 were promoted. In other words, a cop accused of police brutality was two times more likely to get promoted than disciplined.

Obviously, I cant’ recount the full discussion in this limited space. The discussion was videotaped by the Texas State Conference of NAACP Branches (1107 E. 11th Street, Suite A, Austin, Texas 78702, telephone 512/322-0840.)

There needs to be many more forward-looking conversations across the nation. And maybe the Millions More Movement can help facilitate that dialogue.