The Advocate

The San Leandro City Council is having their next regular meeting this Monday, July 19, beginning at 6:30 PM PDT. What’s on the agenda? Climate action, racial justice, police brutality, mental health crisis response, menthol cigarettes, community health, reimagining public safety, affordable housing, and more besides! The Zoom link is here . Alternatively, you can call in at 1-888-788-0099 or 1-877-853-5247. If you are unable to join in real-time, you can still submit your comments to clerk@sanleandro.org. If you do, make sure to CC citycouncil@sanleandro.org to make sure every elected official gets to read what your voice wants them to hear. That said, let’s start in order of appearance! Agenda Item 1.A, Pledge of Allegiance It’s past time we acknowledge that American was founded on stolen land and slave labor. Without accepting the truth of our history, we are doomed to repeat it. Or, at the very least, commit the same sins in rhyme. Including a land acknowledgment helps ground our c

In a promising move of political and moral courage, the San Leandro City Council has authorized the release of the internal investigation report provided by the OIR Group, who were contracted to help clean-up repeated misconduct in the San Leandro Police Department. You can read it and the city’s press release . In what was obvious to most residents, the report confirms that former SLPD Officer Jason Fletcher violated numerous department policies, failed to utilize several non-lethal tactics, and clearly violated the law when fatally shot Steven Taylor on April 18, 2020. Let’s start with the essential conclusion: “Had a different approach been taken, the use of deadly force might have been avoided altogether.” [ Emphasis added.] The report’s findings state this outright, actually condemning the actions of both Fletcher *and* Officer Stefan Overton. Yes, you read that right! Now in this era of increasing cynicism and apathy, I confess to being stunned by this admission. Of course, local