Michael Baldwin MBS Consultants and Legacy Alliance Outreach

Several Modesto Police Department officers and community members are gathering to have honest talks about race and culture. Participants say the sessions have been a positive experience, but not without tense moments.

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During one exercise, police lined up their chairs and sat on one side of a room, facing residents on the other. Officers were asked to close their eyes while being observed, and then they switched and observed the community members. 

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One participant, a Patterson resident, shared that just before she closed her eyes, she was a little alarmed to see an officer move his hand toward his gun. “It’s not because I’m scared,” the officer, Sgt. Dan Starr, explained.

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