RACINE, Wis. (AP) — A pastor has resigned from the Racine Police and Fire Commission amid a backlash over social media posts, including some that critics felt portrayed law enforcement as racist.
Mayor John Dickert confirmed Friday that J. Mark Freeman resigned from the position Dickert appointed him to in April, saying Freeman's primary goal was to "protect the reality and appearance of the unbiased decision-making of the commission."
Freeman, a pastor at Second Missionary Baptist Church, has been under pressure to step down since the posts surfaced publicly. One of them showed a police officer in a pointed white hood aiming a gun at a black youth, the Racine Journal Times reported (http://bit.ly/29VJomt ).
Freeman told WDJT-TV on Tuesday that he made the posts to start a conversation.
In his resignation letter, Freeman thanked the mayor for the opportunity to serve.
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"I will continue to pray for the brave men and women who serve our community and put themselves in harm's way on a daily basis and for those whom they serve, that peace, calm and reconciliation will be the order of the day," Freeman wrote.
The Racine Police Association and the Staff Officer's Association had been seeking to remove Freeman and said they appreciated his decision to step down. In a statement before his resignation was announced, the groups called the posts offensive and said they "broadly portray law enforcement officers in a racist and vitriolic light."
Dickert said Freeman's resignation comes after multiple conversations over the last couple of days.
"He understands that this could bleed into the hearings of the Police and Fire Commission and the work they're trying to do. I give him a lot of credit," Dickert said.
Dickert and the Racine Police Association said they'd like to have community discussions about underlying tensions between officers and the community. The mayor's office said Dickert plans to schedule those conversations with citizens, religious leaders including Freeman, police and himself.
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Information from: The Journal Times, http://www.journaltimes.com
