City approves resolution supporting police

The Siloam Springs city board unanimously passed Resolution 36-20 recognizing and supporting police officers and law enforcement professionals in the city during the board meeting on July 7.

The resolution says the city supports officers who act ethically and with integrity; recognizes the need for law enforcement officers to have the equipment, training and resources that are necessary in order to protect the health and safety of the officers and acknowledges that police officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice should be remembered and honored, according to City Administrator Phillip Patterson.

The resolution also expresses support for the Siloam Springs Police Department to respect all individuals regardless of race or culture; to adopt and emphasize constitutional, ethical and unbiased law enforcement practices and encourages citizens of the city to remain aware of the essential mission that law enforcement personnel undertake and to honor and respect those goals, Patterson said.

There were two comments from the audience. One was from Larry Kenmore Jr., who said the resolution is a good start but the board needs to be more proactive in what it does for police officers. Kenmore mentioned state Rep. Robin Lundstrum’s (R-District 87) involvement with NWA Adopt-a-Cop, which will be coming to Siloam Springs at a date to be determined and how the Siloam Springs Rotary Club fed the fire department during the month of April.

The other speaker, Matthew Feyerabend, owner of Pure Joy Ice Cream, spoke about some of the city’s history as a sundown town and of various injustices of a racial nature he and other associates of his who have experienced in their dealings with the police department.

“Instead of passing this statement, I would encourage you to listen, learn and seek whether our community can make improvements in the way we police,” Feyerabend said.

The city board of directors spoke on the resolution saying they support the police department, but also recognize the city’s history and saying the city has learned from it and moved on.

“Yes we had a bad history, but that history only comes back to haunt us when somebody brings it up,” said Director Marla Sappington. “We have learned from it. We’ve progressed and there’s no need to discuss it. It’s there. It’s not going to go away, but if we learn from it, that’s the best way to view it.”

Director Bob Coleman echoed those sentiments saying the best thing people can do with history is to learn from it. He said he received a lot of emails concerning this and that the chief’s statement a few weeks earlier addressed most of those concerns.

Director Lesa Rissler said she worked for the Fayetteville and Siloam Springs police departments and they will listen to any complaints citizens have. Rissler added that if a person doesn’t feel comfortable talking with the police they could speak to the city administrator or a member of the city board.

“You have a whole team of people you can go to to make sure things are done right,” Rissler said.

Director Brad Burns said he has also received emails from people concerned about the resolution and said the police has a chain of command which the officers must respect. Burns said the resolution is just general support for the police department. Lastly Burns echoed similar sentiments concerning the history of Siloam Springs.

“We do have history, but it is not our future, it does not define us, it is not who we are today,” Burns said.