The Idea of Citizen Participation in the Government

The idea of citizen participation in the government has always been an evolving idea in the US. The concept of citizen advisory boards is one of the most significant issues in the participation of the public in matters of public interest in the government. Citizen advisory councils have always dominated the governmental policy formulation procedures in the US's public administration for long. However, the policing department has been one of the public administration offices that record the least public participation interest in the US. This paper discusses the issue of citizen advisory councils, as highlighted by Dr. John D. Reece in one of his articles. Dr. Reece's article talks about the importance of citizen advisory boards, and how they are important components of the policing department in the US, The article highlights that the citizen advisory boards uphold democracy. The author continues to cite examples of how forms of citizen advisory boards have always been a part of the police departments in some states in the US and end with recommendations for policy leaders to engage the citizenry particularly in the formulation of policies that encourage the involvement of the citizens (Reece, 2015). The inclusion of the recent report of the President's Task Force on 21 st Century Policing adds more relevance to the article on the need to properly institute citizen advisory boards in the law enforcement department (Reece, 2015). The report entails the effectiveness of involving citizens in policing strategies and recommends community involvement and citizen advisory boards as essential pillars to support citizens' participation and involvement in the policing agencies (Reece, 2015). In summary, the article holds that government programs, especially the law enforcement sector, can significantly improve their trust and legitimacy by incorporating policies and public programs. In order to achieve these, the article recommends the citizen advisory boards because they are the most effective components of achieving the trust and legitimacy needed in the law enforcement department and other governmental programs. The article is mostly balanced and comprehensive in its analysis of the effectiveness and the need to have the citizen advisory boards in place. The article especially highlights the specific benefits that will be realized by embracing the idea of citizen advisory boards. It also notes that the citizen advisory boards can be effective not only to the law enforcement departments but also on other governmental programs. Another article dealing with the issue of citizen advisory boards also comes with similar recommendations. According to this other article, some of the laws enacted by the local, state, and federal governments have only served to perpetuate the oppression of citizens instead of protecting their rights (Calhoun, 2016). Often, police officers are required to perform certain tasks that are unpalatable, including practicing legal discrimination, or denying fellow Americans their constitutionally-granted fundamental rights to citizenship (Calhoun, 2016). Calhoun (2016) concludes that involving the community in oversight and planning and enhancing the creation of personal relationships between the community and the police is one of the most effective ways of building trust between the community and the police. Lastly, the article recommends that the police should publicly apologize for their actions in the past that have seen many communities of color mishandled (Calhoun, 2016). 

Conclusion

The involvement of the community oversight in the police department through the idea of the citizen advisory boards is lauded in the two articles as the most effective way of reducing the misunderstanding that exists between the police and the community. This policy implies that it will bring more tolerance between the police and the public and reduce clashes between the police and the public. 

References 

Calhoun, J. A. (2016, November 20). Building trust between police and the communities they serve. National League of Cities. https://www.nlc.org/article/building-trust-between-police-and-the-communities-they-serve 

Reece, J. G. (2015). Citizen advisory boards in contemporary practice: A practical approach in policing. IACP Police Chief. https://www.policechiefmagazine.org/citizen-advisory-boards-in-contemporary-practice-a-practical-approach-in-policing/