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A senior citizen advocacy group in Massachusetts rallied today to amplify their call for the ouster of Springfield’s top cop.
In front of Springfield City Hall, under a hot midday sun, about 40 people chanted, sang, held signs, and listened to speakers call for the removal of Springfield Police Commissioner Cheryl Clapprood.
The calls for Clapprood’s ouster stem from an online meeting the police commissioner had with members of the Massachusetts Senior Action Council in April to discuss police reform. During the meeting, and in a follow-up letter to the organization, Clapprood was “defensive and dismissive” about allegations of racial bias within the police department, said Mattie Lacewell, the president of the council’s Springfield chapter.