Mayor Rosenthal and Police Chief Sliozis Issue Statements on the Killing of George Floyd

At the first Village Board meeting since the killing of George Floyd, Mayor Rosenthal and Police Chief Sliozis held a moment of silence and discussed the Village’s actions to combat bigotry and profiling.

Mayor Rosenthal: Our town proudly displays signs stating “Hate Has No Home Here.” In 2017, the Village signed the Lake County Welcoming and Inclusive Community Pledge. That Pledge states,  "I am proud of Lake County’s diversity. I recognize that at every level of American society, people of all backgrounds contribute to our democracy, culture, and economy. We must advance the fundamental rights and principles upon which the United States was founded, establishing the equality and dignity of all people regardless of their background." You can read the full Pledge here.
 
Deerfield will stand true to its values and call out all acts of hate and bigotry. I grieve for all African Americans who have lived with this fear their entire lives and have seen history repeat itself again and again. We must work toward a country that strives for racial equality.
 
Police Chief Sliozis: First and foremost, on behalf of the men and women of the Deerfield Police Department I would like to extend our deepest condolences to the family of George Floyd. Without question, his death was the result of a police officer’s total disregard for the life of Mr. Floyd.

The Deerfield Police Department has a zero tolerance for racial profiling and expressly prohibits all bias based policing by policy. Officers are regularly trained in cultural diversity, ethics, Constitutional law, Procedural Justice, Human Rights, Cultural Competency, de-escalation techniques and cultural sensitivity. The Department recognizes that more needs to be done. Tragedies like the death of George Floyd continue to occur indicating more needs to be done by all. We look forward to working with our community members and beyond to seek a solution. As we have heard many times, actions speak louder than words. At this point I ask that everyone act appropriately, be smart and be safe. 

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