Communities United Against Police Brutality Fights for Justice with the Help of University of Minnesota Students

A look into police brutality, and what student volunteers are doing to put a stop to it

By Ian Knoll

Police brutality can be an unfortunately easy issue to turn a blind eye to. Maybe it's the constant Safe-U reports, having our own police department, or just the general lack of major incidents, but there can be a sense of security on campus that makes it easy to forget how big the issue is within our Twin Cities community. Even if it's an issue that doesn't affect you directly, organizations like Communities United Against Police Brutality (CUAPB) provide a great opportunity for University of Minnesota students to learn about and help confront these issues.

Every Saturday, members of CUAPB meet to discuss agenda: be it hearing the cases of those seeking help with police brutality cases (and offering their genuinely knowledgeable legal advice), giving lessons on what citizens’ legal rights are and the requirements and laws that apply to police, or simply discussing the many projects and events they’re involved with. For instance, at the meeting I attended their recent efforts to present concrete changes to the soon expiring Minneapolis police contracts (which are often criticized for being renewed with little consideration or changes) were discussed.

Although CUAPB is by no means a UMN organization, they’ve had strong ties to its students throughout their 20+ years. Their program gets a large influx of active student volunteers through the Community Engaged Learning Program (a program at UMN that gives opportunities for off-campus learning through community work), many of whom attend these weekly meetings and become an active part of the organization. Jordan Egan, a current UMN senior and active CUAPB member, got involved through one such class and told me what interested her: “Since I’m not from the Twin Cities, I wanted to get into a community organization that would involve me with local people, not just mostly students. I wanted to get into issues affecting this community, see what’s happening, and see what I could do to help.”

“At any given time period, we have twenty or more students,” CUAPB founding member Michelle Gross said. “And it’s not just students that come for a semester and leave—we have a lot that end up staying with us long term. Some even become board members.” But even those whose involvement isn’t as long-lived can have an impact. “Some students stay and get involved their whole university career, but even those students filtering in each semester really helps pick up the burden of the work,” Egan said.

UMN volunteers aren’t just cogs in a machine either; they become a vital part of how CUAPB operates. “Students bring everything from photography skills to technical skills, writing, and investigation. They bring great skills to the table, and that’s why we love working with them. Students can do very real work with us, not reception desk work or folding and stuffing envelopes. We’re doing real things here, and those students do those real things with us.” Gross said. Take Jordan, for instance, who is spearheading a project with CUAPB called the “Judicial Election Empowerment Project” (JEEP), which is an effort to compare state judicial candidates’ behavior to the Minnesota Judicial Conduct Standards, rate their bias and fairness in past decisions, and give voters a better understanding of who they’re voting for come election season.

Of course, CUAPB also recommends ways that everyone, not just active members, can help deal with police brutality. “For starters, they can teach themselves and each other their rights when speaking to police. That’s just the most fundamental thing people can do: know how to interact safely with police,” Gross said. Gross also recommends bystanders record police encounters, citing a specific incident of Minneapolis police beating on a man in Dinkytown. CUAPB was only able to help after finding someone in a neighboring apartment that happened to film the altercation. “People can videotape and might not think it matters or that it might never be used, but lo and behold—sometimes it does,” Gross said.

Police brutality is at times a complex and difficult topic, but for those wanting a better understanding of community perspectives and experiences on the issue, there are few better options than attending one of CUAPB’s weekly meetings. Egan put it best: “Just showing up, even if you don’t necessarily know how you want to get involved or what sort of impact you want to have, just showing up and listening to the stories of those affected by police brutality can make you more aware of what’s going on around you.”

To learn more, you can visit cuapb.org.