Orlando community learns history of policing and need for community control of police
Orlando, FL – On July 26, members of the Orlando community gathered for an educational panel covering the history of policing and the fight for community control. The event was hosted by Orlando Against Police Crimes (OAPC) at The Drunken Monkey coffee bar, located in the Mills 50 district of Orlando.
The panel began with Cassia Laham, a member of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), highlighting the history of policing in the United States. By giving an overview of the historical role of police in the U.S., she showed how the stated goal of policing is different from the reality that police exist to protect the interests of those who rule the country.
“During the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, police and the National Guard worked in tandem to arrest over 1000 people to break up the strike and over 100 workers were killed,” said Laham. “What I’m hoping you’re seeing here is a pattern of repression against Black men and women in the South. We saw the institution of slavery be codified at the same time as we’re seeing police officers in our northern cities being used to repress workers who are rebelling against their bad working conditions.”
Edmund Anglero, a member of OAPC, stated, “Local communities, particularly historically oppressed communities, should have the power and full control over who polices them and how they are policed. This includes policies and procedures, hire and fire capabilities, even budget and finances.”
The panel concluded with David Porter of OAPC, an Orlando local with 30 years of experience as a journalist, detailing the history of policing in central Florida. He began by highlighting the violent and racist legacy of former central Florida sheriffs, from outed members of the Klan like Sheriff David Starr to the cases of prisoner abuse by Sheriff Willis McCall.
Porter stated, “Willis McCall was many things, including being a striker breaker, a union buster. Because at that time they wanted everyone they could get picking citrus. Labor organizers came into the area to help the workers get organized, and they were routinely beaten up, chased out of town, and jailed on phony charges.”
The event ended with a section where organizers answered questions from the audience. The question of how to get involved and win community control led to talk about the goal of reinstating Orlando’s civilian review board (CRB). A civilian review board is a community-based organization that reviews complaints of police misconduct and recommends disciplinary action. The city of Orlando had a CRB as recently as 2024. Reinstatement would be a major steppingstone on the path to community control of the police.