Will Cleveland become the next Ferguson? Forum by the Word Church with Mayor Jackson, Police Chief Calvin Williams is at 7 pm Monday December 8, union groups led by the SEIU and community activists will protest at City Hall in Cleveland at 6 pm the same day

By Kathy Wray Coleman, editor-in-chief, (www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com) Tel: (216) 659-0473

CLEVELAND, Ohio- (See flyer below) The Word Church will sponsor a forum discussion on Monday, December 8 at 7 pm in Warrensville Heights, a largely Black suburb of Cleveland, with Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, Police Chief Calvin Williams and other Black leaders on the topic of whether Cleveland will become the next Ferguson as the city deals with a crisis of police killings against the Black community and a scathing report released last week by the U.S. Department of Justice that reveals systemic problems in the Cleveland Police Department. Meanwhile, union groups, led by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), and community activists will protest an hour earlier at 6 pm on the steps of Cleveland City Hall.

The Word Church is led by Senior Pastor Dr. R.A. Vernon and is one of greater Cleveland's most prestigious religious venues.

Vernon will moderate the event, which will also feature Dr Jawanza Colvin, senior pastor of Olivet Institutional Baptist Church in Cleveland, and Dr  William Meyers.

Women are not allowed on the panel,organizers said.

Fergurson, Missouri is the center of the nation's attention after a largely White grand jury late last month refused to indict former cop Darren Wilson, who is White and gunned down unarmed Black teen Michael Brown in August.

The grand jury decision sparked riots in the largely Black suburban city and protests across the country, including in Cleveland, a majority Black and impoverished major metropolitan city.