A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
It's been almost five years since a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd. His death was followed by widespread protest.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER #1: (Chanting) Say his name.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) George Floyd.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER #2: (Chanting) Say his name.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) George Floyd.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER #2: (Chanting) Say his name.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) George Floyd.
MARTÍNEZ: Those demonstrations demanded change in law enforcement, and today, the Minneapolis Police Force is still working to rebuild community trust and change its culture. So they've turned to the Los Angeles Police Department - itself no stranger to scandals - for some lessons. Here's NPR's Meg Anderson.
MEG ANDERSON, BYLINE: Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara is wrapping up a day of learning sessions with dozens of his officers.
BRIAN O'HARA: It has been a long five years for everyone in the Twin Cities region. And it has taken some time, and people are still, as we talked about, healing and rebuilding pride and getting back to our purpose.
ANDERSON: He's not just talking about residents. He's talking about police officers, too. George Floyd's murder here in 2020 drew outrage from the community, sparking protests around the country. The state and the federal government condemned the Minneapolis Police Department over patterns of misconduct and use of excessive force. Hundreds of officers left in the aftermath. O'Hara says those who stayed have been through a lot.
O'HARA: Feeling like everything that you've dedicated your life to has kind of been shattered, and it questions the why behind why we are here doing this in the first place.
ANDERSON: That is why he recently brought in two former chiefs from the LAPD.
O'HARA: They got to see that, although it feels like no one's ever been through this before, people have.
ANDERSON: Charlie Beck and Michael Moore were officers in LA during the 1992 riots after Rodney King's beating at the hands of police. They stayed through the turmoil and each went on to lead LAPD. Moore, who retired last year, told Minneapolis officers that two things can be true - accepting that their own grief is valid and...
MICHAEL MOORE: Accepting that this agency fell short. You're a member of this agency.
ANDERSON: He says it's important for officers to recognize that people they interact with in the community might have had many bad experiences with the police, and those experiences might even go back generations.
MOORE: So we teach officers to recognize it had nothing to do with you - it has to do with the uniform that you represent - and to show some humility, some grace and identify it.
ANDERSON: That resonated with Monica Hanson. She's been an officer in Minneapolis for 16 years.
MONICA HANSON: It's been a journey, for sure.
ANDERSON: She says she struggled after 2020.
HANSON: Me thinking it wasn't me and knowing that I work with many great women and men on the police department.
ANDERSON: She acknowledges that they have a lot more work to do, but she says they will get through it.
Meg Anderson, NPR News.
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