Last Saturday, a report faulting the Asheville Police Department for being racist surfaced. Lt. Anthony Franklin of the Richmond, VA police department came to Asheville to lead the police department in diversity training exercises. He prepared the report at the request of an unnamed individual for an extra $2700 made payable by guess who. Franklin was representing the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation, which denied knowledge of the report and has since removed Franklin’s name from their list of instructors online.
The report has been highly criticized not only for its lack of proofreading, but for its labeling of APD as racist for hiring a disproportionately low number of African-Americans, denying promotions to African-Americans, lying about partnering with the African-American community, having a police chief who lacks the leadership to reverse the department’s culture of racism, and a host of other issues.
The VCPI refuses to officially recognize the report, but the city will continue to investigate allegations of racism at the police department.
