St. Paul students call for mayor to act on school cops

Dozens of Central High School students confronted St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman in the city's council chambers over what they said was evidence of racial bias and abuse by school resource officers, or SROs, assigned to their campus.

They were galvanized by the arrest last week of a African-American former student by an SRO outside of the school. The incident was captured on cellphone video, and showed the officer wrestling the young man to the ground and putting his knee to his back while cuffing him.

"It was the last straw for us," said Saffiyah Alaniz Muhammad, a junior at Central. "SROs don't know how to de-escalate a situation without manhandling and tackling children. We're still children. The fact that we're here having to prove our humanity is irritating."

In response to the incident, St. Paul Public Schools issued a statement May 26 saying it valued the "partnership" with the St. Paul Police Department and "our School Resource Officers."

"The police have informed us that they are reviewing the incident as they do every time force is used to determine what happened and whether or not the use of force could have been avoided," the statement said.

The students, members of Central's Pan-African Student Union, walked from the school to St. Paul City Hall to meet with the mayor.

"Today we want to make sure there are policies for SROs and how they can treat us," said Makkah Abdu Salaam, a junior. "There has been a pattern of these white officers coming into our school and brutalizing us mentally and physically."

They peppered Coleman with questions for his thoughts on the video, which was posted on social media. It's gotten more than 400,000 views on Facebook.

"Did you feel as sick as I felt when you saw that video?" Salaam asked.

"No, because I don't know what happened before that," the mayor said. "We don't know why it escalated to that point."

"We don't know the facts. That's why this review is going to be conducted so I can't draw a conclusion," he added.

"Why are you desensitized to black youth being abused?" one student asked as the others showed their approval by snapping their fingers.

"I think you're presuming to know a lot more about me than you do," Coleman said. "I spent my entire career as mayor, working on issues of equality, equity and justice." He cited work with the African American Leadership Council, Black Lives Matter, as well as the resignation of the police officer who encouraged drivers to run over protesters.

He offered to meet with students again. For their part, the students called for a "blackout" Wednesday — encouraging black students to stay home from school or wear all-black if they go to school.

"I'm a little frustrated," Muhammad said after the meeting. "I feel like the mayor wasn't listening but we're not done working. I know our parents pay taxes and send us to these schools for us to feel safe."

The students plan to talk to police and school district officials.

After the meeting, Coleman's office posted a statement from the mayor, saying he "made it clear to the students that I do not believe all arrests demonstrate police brutality, that arrests are rarely easy to watch and de-escalation is a key skill the Chief and I look for and expect from our officers.

"The incident at Central High School is being reviewed by command staff within the Saint Paul Police Department, as in any case involving use of force, and I expect to hear their assessment in the coming days."