The Observation Deck

It's been a couple of weeks since Mike Summers' coverup of the Madison Library police incident was exposed.
A lot of folks expressed surprise and shock when details were first announced, but since then I've noticed folks lapsing into excuse-making for the administration.
I've seen Summers acolytes on Facebook defending City Hall's silence on this matter. The attitude of City Hall and its minions toward the victim has been blasé at best.
I've even seen some of the Mayor's harshest critics downplay this incident....I suspect they don't want to damage the Lakewood "brand".

One citizen asked about the incident at last night's council meeting. Summers responded with a pile of mealy-mouth tripe such as "these are not easy issues".
He then went so far as to question the facts of the case by throwing shade at the plaintiff's lawsuit. Apparently he thinks that everyone hasn't seen the video.
More lies and spin from the most dishonest Mayor in Lakewood history.
I'm embarrassed to be represented by such a scoundrel. I'm doubly embarrassed that he is a fellow Northwestern alum.

Needless to say, if that girl had been from Clifton Park or one of the "nicer" parts of Lakewood, things would have been handled far, far, differently.
But we're not supposed to say things like that in Lakewood.
We're expected to spout talking points about diversity and to steadfastly maintain that "race has nothing to do with it". (no matter what "it" is.....hospital, basketball, pit bulls, etc)

I continue to be amazed at the breathtaking hypocrisy of our so-called "progressive" City Council. They are more than willing to sit silently and hope that the Library incident fades into memory.
These are not good days.

I always laugh when people tout Lakewood's "diversity."

Perhaps they are thinking in terms of income, but it certainly is not diverse in ethnic makeup. I wonder if people think seeing a few black people in town makes Lakewood "diverse."

In fact, Lakewood is OVERWHELMINGLY white.

Just look at our city government - lily white and mostly male.

Even a recent analysis in the PD says Lakewood lacks ethic diversity:

https://www.google.com/amp/amp.clevelan ... les_to.amp

Looking for ethnic diversity?

Lakewood's reputation as a white suburb on a blue lake is born out in the most recent U.S. Census statistics. White residents make up the vast majority of Lakewood's population, while no single ethnic group has an overwhelming majority in Cleveland Heights.

Here are more census figures.

http://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/in ... n_for.html

Lakewood, as an inner ring suburb, is one of the "whitest" out there.

Take a look at the numbers: Euclid 58% black, Cleve Hts 43% black, Shaker Hts 33% black, LAKEWOOD 6.6% black.

Why even Beachwood has a larger black population at almost 11%. Or Brooklyn at over 7% black.

No matter how you define "diverse," Lakewood is NOT racially diverse.

My thoughts haven't changed.

Here's what I know.
I sat in a meeting where a Build Lakewood supporter, a Mike Summers supporter, felt comfortable talking about "those people from across 117th street." ... Those people, not like us.

Here's what I know.
Lakewood is a city that prides itself on diversity. But here's the scorecard when it comes to positions of power.
Mayor- white.
Law Director- white.
City Council- white, white, white, white, white, white, white.
Planning and Development Director- white
Finance Director - white.
Head of The Dem's Club - white.
Fire Chief- white.
Police Chief - white.

It's more than fair to ask how all that whiteness colors the groupthink, how it influences the culture at city hall.
It's fair to ask: is this about more than one officer mistreating a teenager?

Black Jaws may not matter in Lakewood.
But Black Jaws are going to matter in a court of law.

Bridget Conant wrote:Here are more census figures.

http://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/in ... n_for.html

Lakewood, as an inner ring suburb, is one of the "whitest" out there.

Take a look at the numbers: Euclid 58% black, Cleve Hts 43% black, Shaker Hts 33% black, LAKEWOOD 6.6% black.

Why even Beachwood has a larger black population at almost 11%. Or Brooklyn at over 7% black.

No matter how you define "diverse," Lakewood is NOT racially diverse.

I think much of the diversity in Lakewood is showing up more in the schools than the general population and is certainly not reflected in the powers that be in this community,
many of which do not send their children to the public schools. That said, when Lakewood Alive was first launched, someone suggested I sign on. I did, and then the person who suggested it made what I construed as racist comments regarding the "changes" at Lakewood High. I think she thought I shared her views. I asked to be removed from the group and Mary Ann Crampton called me to ask why and she convinced me to stay on and she would look into the racist comments. I do believe Ms. Crampton was sincere, but the person who recommended Lakewood Alive to me is still active in many organizations, including Build Lakewood. As I said, I construed her comments as racist and were not overtly so, but I certainly feel the "diversity" spin is very half-baked. One of the reasons that refugees are settled here is how walkable the community is...walk to grocers, walk to school, walk to health care. That is no more. The diversity we celebrate is not considered.

Kate, as long as Bill and I have lived in Lakewood (a long time), we have heard that phrase, "Lakewood is changing". Because we have low cost housing, Lakewood will always be changing. Lutheran Ministries-and possibly other groups-bring us refugees. We, like you, think that's a positive thing.

I never had Shish Tawook until I was an adult. Wasted years.

We know what, "Lakewood is changing" means. We heard about not wanting people from Cleveland coming to Lakewood Hospital. We don't want "them" here. When we bought our house, some old neighbors told us that it had been perviously owned by Arabs. Not the "dirty" Arabs, the "nice, clean, Christian Arabs." We were shocked, although we shouldn't have been.

The way this issue has been handled makes me feel ashamed.

From the CleveScene:

https://m.clevescene.com/scene-and-hear ... ple-around

My prediction on the victim's lawsuit- a quick settlement.

Subodh Chandra does not suffer fools.

At the last council meeting, a citizen questioned the city's response to the library incident. After speaking, Bullock asked the mayor to respond.

You can see and hear his response here at about 1:19 mark:

http://onelakewood.granicus.com/MediaPl ... lip_id=161

The mayor contends the facts are not all in and that the video was released by a "flamboyant" attorney for the plaintiff, suggesting that the incident wasn't as bad as it appeared.

WTF mayor, your own police department viewed those same videotapes and questioned everyone and found the officer used excessive force.

We really have an administration that lives in an alternate reality.

Thank you Lakewood Police. I support you 100%.

This person needed to take full responsibility for her actions. It appears it was she that chose to give the Police Officer a hard time.

Why does everything always have to become a race issue?

You did not listen to the Police Officer young lady. Be responsible, own it!

For those of you that are disgruntled with law enforcement, it may be worth looking into volunteering as a liaison between police and citizens. I currently volunteer for a similar program at the federal level, and find it very rewarding.

Yes, a teenaged girl gave the 200 pound officer with a gun a "hard time."

Also, the police officer needs to take full responsibility for his actions. His actions put patrons and staff unnecessarily at risk. The Lakewood Police deemed his actions excessive. There was no need whatsoever for this type of removal. Wait for assistance to arrive. Numbers change attitudes fast. You can support police 100% and still not agree with a specific incident.

Bridget Conant wrote:The mayor contends the facts are not all in and that the video was released by a "flamboyant" attorney for the plaintiff, suggesting that the incident wasn't as bad as it appeared.

WTF mayor, your own police department viewed those same videotapes and questioned everyone and found the officer used excessive force.

Exactly this. The facts are not in—but the police department has completed an exhaustive review. What?

mjkuhns wrote:

Bridget Conant wrote:The mayor contends the facts are not all in and that the video was released by a "flamboyant" attorney for the plaintiff, suggesting that the incident wasn't as bad as it appeared.

WTF mayor, your own police department viewed those same videotapes and questioned everyone and found the officer used excessive force.

Exactly this. The facts are not in—but the police department has completed an exhaustive review. What?

" Plaintiff's attorney who has an eye towards flamboyance" allow me to introduce you to Lakewood's mayor who has a predilection for bullsh*t.

I do agree that it was wrong of Mr. Summers to keep this quiet. However, he does seem to have a track record for this sort of sly behavior.

It reminds me of the silence surrounding a rapist working in Lakewood two years ago and a murder/rape that was kept quiet in an apartment on Clifton from almost three years ago.

Why should we expect any different?