As the first black female mayor of Parma, Mo., took office last week, five of the town’s six police officers resigned, Missouri television station KFVS reported.
The new mayor, Tyrus Byrd (pictured above on the right), was sworn in on Tuesday evening. Former Mayor Randall Ramsey told KFVS that in addition to the five police officers, the city’s attorney, clerk and water treatment plant supervisor resigned due to “safety concerns.”
Byrd was not aware why the five police officers resigned, according to KFVS. When she took office, Byrd said she could not find the resignation letters and that the city computers had been cleared. She told KFVS that she needs more information before addressing the resignations publicly.
Byrd was born and raised in Parma, and formerly served as the city clerk. Ramsey lost the mayoral election to Byrd by 37 votes after serving as the mayor for 37 years, according to KFVS.
I wondered what the “safety concerns” might be, and decided maybe they felt their jobs weren’t safe now that someone might take issue with all the racist comments, jokes, and images they’ve stupidly shared for years on their work-provided computers and phones. Bit of a mystery otherwise. Call me a cynic, everyone else does. : )
Yeah. This sounds suspicious and ominous. I wonder how many computers and which ones?
If people really want to honor those who fought for civil rights in the 1960s, voting is the way to do it.
Cast your ballot and influence the way your government works.
This is a vivid example of citizens taking control and challenging the status quo.
I say Hurray.
If they’re the kind of people who would resign because the town just got a black female mayor, then they didn’t have any business being in public service in the first place. Good riddance.