MUSKEGON, Mich. -- Law enforcement from around Muskegon County came out on Wednesday evening to open up a dialogue with the people they serve. The goal was to have a conversation that will help both sides better understand the other.
One of the people who decided to stop by was Willie Wilson, who was born and raised in Muskegon County and now mentors youth in the area.
"Some of the young people that I mentor, they indicate different communities they are fearful of going into or drive into because, you know, they don't want to encounter the police in those areas," said Wilson.
"I do a lot of work with young men and women, teenage individuals," said Wilson.
"So mentoring them, I want to be able to provide some information in regards to how to interact with officers that they may encounter."
Wilson also said that he has people in his life that on a daily basis are worried about being profiled by police.
Michigan State Police said that in recent days, the images out of Baltimore add fire to the national debate, but said MSP Lt. Chris McIntire said that it's important to focus on the issues locally.
"It always adds fire if you have negative things with police anywhere in the country, it all links back to us here locally, said McIntire. But he points out that Michigan is not Ferguson, Missouri, nor Baltimore. "What I like to tell people is that we are not the place that happened 600 miles to the west and we are not the place where it happened 400 or 500 miles to the east. We are here in Muskegon, Michigan."
Opening up conversations and having a casual interaction with officers is what Michigan State Police said it hopes will help improve their relationship.
"This is a way to bridge the gap between the community and law enforcement," said McIntire. "To have these conversations today about just stuff. You can ask questions about what's going on, like 'Why did my son get stopped?' Or just stuff we are doing in Muskegon Heights."
Wilson said that his time with the officers was very beneficial, and he even learned something himself, such as where to pull over when stopped by police. "I always thought you know if you are on a busy road, you pull off to maybe a not-so-busy side street. But the officer actually indicated that it's best to go ahead and stop right there on the street that they are pulling you over on."
Muskegon County law enforcement and the Muskegon Rotary Club's Diversity and Inclusion Committee hope to continue to host these types of community meetings.
