Put a Republican on the Police Civilian Oversight Board!

Blaska IS diversity!

The proprietor of the Policy Werkes has submitted his application for membership in the City of Madison’s Police Civilian Oversight Board. Still trying to make something of himself, even at his advanced age. Might help our rumored mayoral campaign.

The PCOB is the biggest cheerleader for the city’s renegade police monitor, who has vowed to “Burn this F-ing city down.” Blaska would love to join this august body. We’d bring a fire extinguisher.

Four of the allotted 13 seats (two alternates) are vacant. Sorry to say, the deck is more stacked against our appointment than the Titanic on its trip to the bottom. By city ordinance, the mayor and Common Council “shall strive to consider” appointing members involved in mental health, youth advocacy, alcohol and substance abuse. Kid you not, they also want arrest/conviction records! Do speeding tickets count?

They also want “racial and ethnic diversity.” The City specifies Black, Asian, Latinx, Native American, and LGBTQ+. More strikeouts than the Dodgers v Misiorowski.

Worse, they want members nominated by “community-based organizations [involved in] civil rights, immigrant rights, disability rights, mental health, racial equity, and social justice. But above all: criminal justice reform.” We’re interested in criminal justice reform, just not how they think.

Beginning to suspect they don’t want Republicans. Seriously, is any other government body that tendentious?

→ More incompetence: Madison Police Civilian Oversight Board postpones meeting after failing to post agenda ahead of time. (WMTV-15) (We looked day of the meeting and couldn’t find it either.)

Here’s who have passed through the City’s eye of the needle for membership on the PCOB (and their affiliations): Devon Snyder (from Brandi Grayson’s Urban Triage), Stephanie A. Rearick (from Amelia Royko Maurer’s Community Response Team), Hope Vang (Cops out of schools Freedom Inc.), Helyn Luisi-Mills (of Just Dane aka Madison-area Urban Ministry, “an interfaith social justice organization”), Katherine Nelson (YWCA), Vanessa Statam (National Alliance on Mental Illness), Maia Pearson (also school board president; has the “arrest” thing), Michelle E. Miller (UW economic anthropologist), Rodney D. Saunders Jr. (employee engagement officer at WisDOT).

There will be a test

The PCOB application form asks: “Please describe how your lived experience supports the Board’s desired diversity.” Now I’ve got them! Blaska thinks. He answers:

“Old, white, able-bodied, middle-class hetero male. Christian, Republican, home owner, mostly sane, often-sober tax payer. I would be the only one!”

The application form asks: “Are you being nominated by a community organization?” Blaska answered:

“Republican Party of Dane County.”

The application form asks: “Please describe your experience and/or interest in police reform:” Blaska writes:

“It’s gone too far.” 

Let’s pack the court!

So far, so good. Page 4 confronted this applicant with 15 boxes to suss out ethnicity, race, disability, and gender (“woman, man, genderqueer [one word], non-binary/non-conforming, prefer not to respond”). With nary a scintilla of liberal guilt, we checked “White,” signed our name, and sent it off to city hall by snail mail.

At least Blaska was not required to draw the hands on a clock like at our annual wellness visit. Just the same, the white lab coats at the Werkes encourage EVERYONE to apply (here).

Blaska’s Bottom Line: is this ace in the hole: The ordinance (Sections 5.19 and 5.20) also requires “members represent a diversity of age, socio-economic status, gender, geographic residence, and work experience.”

Think I have a chance?