Letters to the editor: Interfaith group seeks just investigation of Jayland Walker death

Interfaith group seeks just, peaceful probe

Because we at the Akron Area Interfaith Council believe that all of us are intricately connected to each other through the love and compassion of the God who transcends all names, we grieve the loss of life of our brother Jayland Walker, and we join with other leaders and organizations in calling for a just and peaceful investigation into his tragic death.

Because the mission statement of the Akron Area Interfaith Council highlights that we endeavor to “enable effective interfaith responses to the social, moral, ethical and cultural issues of our community,” and because a fundamental tenet of every major religion is to love our neighbor, we unequivocally endorse a peaceful, transparent process of securing the fact-based truth to reconcile the deadly actions with the reality of what it means to take a human life.

Our belief that we are interconnected compels us to offer our prayers for Walker’s loved ones, for the people and the community who grieve his death, for the police officers involved, in addition to wisdom and discernment for our community, for the Akron Police Department and the Ohio Bureau of Investigation as they investigate this tragedy.

Thus, we urge our interconnected community to pursue a just and peaceful investigation with patience and compassion for all involved in this tragedy and to implement actions which would prohibit a similar tragedy ever again. As the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. stated with profound insight:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly.”

Constance Dubick, Lee Holmes, Judy DiNardo and Kathryn Ress of the Akron Area Interfaith Council leadership team

Be mindful of message police are sending

I do not have the courage to be a police officer in this country, nor do I have any idea what it feels like to be a Black man living here.

I do understand, however, that the message sent by the presence of SWAT team members in downtown Akron the day after incidents of violence arose among otherwise peaceful protests calling for accountability in the shooting death of Jayland Walker could have led to unintended consequences.

While SWAT members themselves are simply carrying out the difficult job they have been hired to do, the decision to send SWAT to protests is a misguided one. More than a half century of research and history has shown that a tactical presence at a protest can lead to an escalation of violence, including the deaths of protesters and of police.

It surely is incredibly difficult for law enforcement to know at any protest whether and when things might go south and force is needed to protect themselves and others. Police have legitimate safety concerns for which precautions must be taken. And anger among protesters, residents, business owners and law enforcement when peaceful protests are hijacked by some who destroy property and behave violently is understandable.

But for those whose justifiable rage and despair turn toward violence and away from the peaceful means necessary for any change, the optics of authority figures dressed in tactical gear ready for war looks like a provocation rather than any attempt at de-escalation or an effort to keep everyone, including police officers, safe and the city peaceful.

Kelly Urbano, Akron

Resident has another question

The questions listed in the July 6 article “Jayland Walker death still poses questions” are reasonable and important. But I think there is one more that needs to be asked and answered to help clarify what happened on that tragic night. Why did Walker try to run from the police with a ski mask on?

David Higley, Akron

Dialogue, changes to system are needed

I am concerned about the Jayland Walker murder going dark indefinitely for investigation by a bunch of people who are probably the ones who wrote the guidance that would let police off the hook.

Where in this process can we agree that in the case of a vehicle equipment violation, if a person flees, we let them go and they are fined or whatever after the fact. We don’t chase after them and then execute them.

Consider the white man in Highland Park, Illinois, who shot 30 people and killed seven. He was taken into custody without incident. Something is really wrong here.

I am most afraid that the people in charge will find that based on the way the rules are written to protect police that there will be no justice and no change to the system. What we need is a change to the rules of engagement for traffic stops and dialogue with leaders in the Black community about meaningful ways to build trust with law enforcement. Throwing this incident under investigation will do nothing to address the simmering anger and resentment that will continue to build.

Becky Weihe, Akron

Living up to Founding Fathers' vision?

This year, 2022 marks the 246th anniversary of the birth of our nation. Last Sunday, I attended two worship services. The first was less formal, held outdoors and the pastor pulled up a chair in front of a small group of worshippers and started by saying, “Akron made the national news, this week,” referring to the shooting death of Jayland Walker, and asked the group, what should we be praying about today?

Many hands went up to suggest prayers and sympathies for the Walker family and all those personally affected, prayers for the local leaders who have to deal with the aftermath, etc. I decided to chime in and said that we need to pray for America; today’s America pales in comparison to the America that our Founding Fathers envisioned and fought for. They fought for individual liberty and freedom and the God-given right of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness — if an unwanted pregnancy stands in the way of a young woman in search of her pursuit of happiness, isn’t that a violation of those words? The America of today has corrupt leaders who lie and cheat for their personal agendas and gains. Why is abortion even a matter of the state? Isn’t that a violation of the principle of “separation of church and state?

During both services, we sang “America the Beautiful.” The line from third stanza, "for heroes proved in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved!” particularly caught my attention. How many of today's politicians and legislators are living to those standards?

Bill Melver, Akron

Voice of the People

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Email: VOP@thebeaconjournal.com

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron interfaith group urges transparency after shooting death