(Short thread)
As we remember the life & work of Mayor David Dinkins, his leadership creating the Civilian Complaint Review Board is worth elevating.

Police accountability had been a problem in NYC forever. The first try at civilian oversight (1960s) was met w/ backlash. (1/5)

The head of the PBA then said, "I’m sick and tired of giving in to minority groups with their whims and their gripes and shouting." The PBA then backed a successful ballot measure getting rid of civilian oversight.

A similar reform effort in the 80s was also overturned. (2/5)

But after the Tompkins Square riots & Rodney King, people were clamoring for police reform.

In 1992, Mayor Dinkins proposed the CCRB with leadership & staff independent from the NYPD.

Naturally, the police rioted, Rudy Giuliani leading the charge. (3/5) https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2016/11/16/more-on-the-time-rudy-giuliani-helped-incite-a-riot-of-racist-cops/

Mayor Dinkins succeeded in getting a civilian-led CCRB through the City Council in 1993. That was historic.

Here's the bad news. He was voted out that fall.

The job of staffing and building out CCRB procedures went to appointees by the new mayor - Rudy Giuliani. (4/5)

To this day, many of the CCRB's shortcomings derive from policies set by Giuliani & Bloomberg, neither of whom had any interest in police reform.

As we discuss major changes to the CCRB under the next mayor, let's lift up the leader who actually took on the NYPD: Dave Dinkins.