Tishaura Jones: Response to St. Louis POA's Racism Allegations

The following letter was sent to members of the Missouri House of Representatives by Rep. Tishaura Jones and released to the media.

Dear Colleagues:

Last week, I sent the attached letter to the Democratic members to dispel the myths about Local Control of the St. Louis Police Department. On Thursday, just as we completed one of the most gruesome debates on the State’s budget, the St. Louis Police Officers Association (POA), distributed the attached letter to as a rebuttal. The POA has stooped to an all time low in their attempt to mislead and mischaracterize by accusing me of trying to make you, my fellow colleagues, believe that Local Control is a racial issue. I have never mentioned race in my attempts to convince anyone to support Local Control. The only time race has been mentioned in the debate about local control was attached letter from Joe Steiger. Local Control is not about pensions; it is not about the size of the Board of Aldermen; it’s not about the St. Louis Fire Department; and it is not about race. Local Control is about taxation without representation, it is about the sovereignty of the taxpayers of the City of St. Louis to have the same rights that all of the counties in the State of Missouri currently have. If a lot of you believe that the recently passed federal health care legislation is an intrusion on Missouri’s sovereignty, then state control of the St. Louis Police Department is a violation of St. Louis City’s sovereignty on STERIODS. The POA’s assertion that I inserted race in this issue is a blatant and outright lie. I urge you in the affirmative for the sovereignty of the residents of the City of St. Louis.

Sincerely,


Tishaura O. Jones

63rd District

Rep. Jones' letter from 23 March (PDF)
Response from St. Louis POA legislative chairman Joe Steiger (PDF)