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‘3 Cops Talk’: Podcast aims to unite police and civilians
On their podcast, 3 Cops Talk, officers Chris Sherwin, Shaun Ferguson and Scott Thorsen talk about everything from police brutality to racial tension, to domestic violence to traffic stops.
CHICAGO - It has been almost a year since the death of George Floyd when Minneapolis police tried to arrest him.
Since then, tensions between local police departments and the communities they serve have increased.
In Wednesday’s Special Report, Anthony Ponce introduces three Chicago area police officers who are trying to change that by taking to the air waves.
They are not afraid to chase down the worst criminals, and they are not afraid to have the tough conversations either.
On their podcast, "3 Cops Talk," officers Chris Sherwin, Shaun Ferguson and Scott Thorsen talk about everything from police brutality to racial tension, to domestic violence to traffic stops.
However, listeners won't just hear from the three cops in the podcast. They will also hear directly from the other side.
For each segment, a person from the community joins the discussion.
Wednesday’s guest was activist Garland Mays.
Sherwin says the purpose of the podcast is to build a bridge between police and civilians.
"We want the civilians to see what we see. We want to learn what they see, so we can basically stop all this rhetoric and nonsense that is going on," said Sherwin.
He says he got the idea to launch this podcast last November after hearing about how a friend of a friend felt awkward just going to the grocery story because he is African-American.
That is when he knew there had to be some place for people to literally sit down and start talking.
"You hear the good and the bad, and then you also hear the truth and untruth," said Mays.
The group bases their show topics on what is happening in the news and on comments or emails they receive from listeners.
"I hope it will get people talking. I hope we can solve some of these problems. Everybody is looking for a quick answer, a quick fix, and it didn’t happen overnight. It’s not going to get fixed overnight," said Ferguson.
They believe the sooner people start listening to each other, the sooner the gap can be bridged between police and the communities they serve.
"I think we are starting to have a small impact just in our little part of the world. I see it growing into something bigger hopefully," said Thorsen.
Sherwin hopes the conversations they are having here will eventually start happening around the world.
You can find the "3 Cops Talk" podcast anywhere you download your podcasts.
You can also send them a question or comment at 3copstalk@gmail.com.