Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey talks 'Black Lives Matter' movement on Fox News
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey discussed the "Black Lives Matter" movement and so-called "Ferguson effect" on community-police relations during an appearance on Fox News Sunday.
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Protesters who hurl anti-law-enforcement invective are missing opportunities to make a difference in community-police relations, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said during an appearance on Fox News Sunday.
Ramsey was on Tuesday forced to cancel a community discussion at the Eastern State Penitentiary after demonstrators from the Black Lives Matter movement interrupted him with shouts of "racist police."
"I think it's ignorant to do things like that," Ramsey said Sunday after host Chris Palmer played a video clip of the confrontation.
"But I also think the people that are serious in this movement are missing an opportunity to really make a difference," Ramsey continued.
"If all you want to do is get up during a meeting and yell and scream and shout and then walk out, then you're not going to get too far because there's no opportunity for dialogue."
Ramsey appeared on the show along with Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn to discuss heightened tensions between law enforcement and the communities they serve in the wake of several high-profile police-involved shootings and officer deaths.
Here are some other points Philly's top cop made on the show:
Crime isn't just affected by policing tactics – there are other major drivers that need to be dealt with in order to stem its tide.
Ramsey: "If they want to really deal with the issue of black lives and the number of homicides that take place, then you have to look at the crime that takes place on the streets of our city, black on black crime. If you don't address that, if you don't address the drivers of crime, then this is just going to not result in anything at all positive."
The media distorts the view of what's going on in policing by disproportionately focusing on incidents of police misconduct.
Ramsey: "There are hundreds of thousands of interactions that occur between police and community every single day that you don't know about because they absolutely went well. We've taken 2,000 guns off the streets of Philadelphia without a shot being fired by a police officer. Now, these are illegal guns being carried by a person. Those arrests are made; no one is injured. I mean, nobody talks about that sort of thing."
The 5 percent bump in Philly's year-to-date homicide rate is cause for concern but must also be viewed in light of the fact that murders here had declined dramatically in the years leading up to last.
Ramsey: "We've had historically low numbers in terms of homicides and shootings for several years now. And so our numbers are being compared to that and we're starting to have an upward trend, which is something to be very, very concerned about. We don't want to go in that direction. But I also think it's important to remember just exactly what we're being compared to."
Though Philadelphia's crime statistics show no evidence of a so-called "Ferguson effect" – a theory advanced by some that officers have pulled back from enforcement due to a fear of violence and perceived lack of community support, emboldening criminals in turn – that doesn't mean these issues aren't at play here.
Ramsey: "There is a problem out there, no question about it. Certainly Ferguson has had an impact on us in policing. To what extent? I don't know."