June 9, 2021

Statement on New “Security” Measures at Des Moines City Council Meetings

The people of Des Moines know what keeps us healthy and safe: racial justice, good jobs, healthcare for all, and the abolition of DMPD.

Mayor Frank Cownie claims that security is a concern for the city council, but the biggest threat in City Hall is the council itself and their unwillingness to represent the residents of Des Moines. 

The city’s security checks and metal detectors show that the council is more interested in vilifying and criminalizing the community than offering real solutions.

Mandating a security check and metal detector walk-through to attend a council meeting in person are ways that the council continues to vilify and attempt to criminalize community members, especially Black community members who have shown up to these meetings to support the abolition of DMPD.

Furthermore, the 25-person limit is clearly designed to stifle dissent, not keep us safe. The council is not requiring masks be worn, and has cut off Zoom access for this in person meeting, which further shows they have no interest in hearing from as many Des Moines residents as possible. 

The city refused to make cops wear masks to keep us safe,  but now they’re making us pass through security with guns to threaten us while claiming they care about public safety.

Zoom council meetings have expanded accessibility for folks with disabilities, people who work at this time, and countless others. 

If the council cared about the safety of the Des Moines community as much as they cared about their own personal safety, they would have expanded access to meetings, not restricted it. If they listened to the people of this city, we would never be in this position to begin with.