Dozens of protesters in Dallas marched from Klyde Warren Park to City Hall on Sunday. Chief Renee Hall volunteered to speak to the group, but she chose to leave after she was continually interrupted by protesters.
“We’re here to work. The Dallas Police Department is here to work. We’re working with multiple agencies, we’ve made changes in our organization, and we will continue to make those changes,” Hall said. “It is difficult to heal those things that are broken, but we have to work together.”
Hall spoke for less than five minutes after protesters interrupted her throughout the course of her remarks.
“I am not angry that they are angry. I feel the pain that they feel and I understand, but what I will say is as long as we are in this space, we can’t move to the next space,” Hall told the press as she left the protest. “We have to be able to work alongside one another. Work has to be done. And we need to come together to get it done.”
The organizer of the event is understanding of the frustration, but acknowledged the need for both sides to listen.
“I can’t blame the community for feeling the way they feel,” United Justice League’s Zachariah Manning said. “We have to let her speak and then when she’s finished speaking then ask the questions to address different concerns.”
Several of the protesters called for Hall's resignation. Protesters expressed frustration for the police department’s handling of protests in recent weeks. Hall said she will not resign.
Ryan Lewis was among those calling for Hall’s resignation. He said he was among a group teargassed outside city hall a few weeks back. He said the city should cut funding for police.
“What will reduce crime in the city are social services,” Lewis said. “If you want to get people off the street, give them homes, give them education, give them food, give them a chance to live their life.”
Hall spoke briefly about the issue of defunding the police. It’s a challenging dilemma in Dallas. Personnel makes up 87% of the police general fund budge. For months, as crime has soared, city leaders have spoke of the need to hire hundreds of more officers. Now, as thousands urge cities to cut funding, Hall acknowledged that cutting funding in Dallas would likely mean cutting officers for a department that already has crime and staffing challenges.
“I don’t agree with defunding the police department,” Hall said. “One of the things I have to say is that defunding the police department means keeping the right to safety and protection away from our taxpaying citizens.”
Hall said she is very open to making changes in policing, but acknowledges however the city moves forward, both sides need to be willing to listen.
“One of the things that we can’t do is we can’t continue to fight, because fighting doesn’t get anything else done,” Hall said.