Minneapolis rolling out digital surveys to "strengthen community-police relations"
MINNEAPOLIS — The City of Minneapolis is using a new digital tool to get residential feedback on public safety.
Minneapolis officials say the City Council gave the green light in October to a three-year contract with Zencity, specifying the company's software will be used to conduct resident surveys with the goal of boosting public safety and trust in the Minneapolis Police Department.
Mayor Jacob Frey says the tool will help with "reenvisioning community safety."
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"This perception survey will give us real-time, honest, and objective feedback as we continue to find ways to strengthen community-police relations and shift the culture of our police department," Frey said. "With this initiative, (Police Chief Brian O'Hara) and the MPD are going above and beyond the requirements of the settlement agreement – and they will be doing the hard work to better understand our communities' views and figure out ways to deepen the trust in the MPD for many generations to come."
The settlement agreement Frey referenced came after a two-year investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice in the wake of George Floyd's murder by ex-MPD officer Derek Chauvin in 2020.
The DOJ concluded MPD regularly deprives people of their First Amendment rights; uses excessive force and "unjustified deadly force;" discriminates against people of color — specifically Black and Native American community members — as well as residents with behavior health disabilities.
The investigation led to a legally-binding consent decree between the City of Minneapolis, MPD and an independent oversight committee.
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The surveys, which will first be issued this month, will be available in eight different languages, and "will appear to residents with digital ads in various locations, such as news websites, social media platforms and other applications," according to city officials.
The survey results will be shared quarterly with the public.
In a statement, a Zencity spokesperson said the company "and our partner cities believe that the ability to show up at a meeting should not prevent anyone's voice being heard in the halls of power."
WCCO reported in 2021 that several Minnesota cities have used Zencity's artificial intelligence to aggregate and monitor local social media posts and comments.
It is not clear if Minneapolis will also use Zencity's software in that manner.
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