‘Very little has shifted’: watch house case a major concern for First Nations group advising Queensland police

This is the best summary I could come up with:

A key adviser to the Queensland police on First Nations issues says more urgency is required to fix racism in the ranks, amid concerns the service has failed to address widespread cultural problems exposed by a commission of inquiry.

“We need to stop approaching this as business as usual and [start] acting with a sense of urgency,” Thomas said, pointing to an “alarming number” of deaths in Queensland police custody this year.

The QPS responded to questions from Guardian Australia last week, including to suggestions by Longbottom that senior officers had been “hostile” towards dealing with real issues.

When asked about the response, Thomas said it exposed a major part of the problem: that police view engagement with Indigenous people as “performative” rather than seeking to collaborate or co-design reform, or address serious issues.

“The QPS needs to act with integrity and transparency and be highly visible in moving beyond performative gestures to taking real and substantial action to address these issues.

“The commissioner has always been candid that these relationships will take time to build meaningful trust and respect, however, the QPS is committed to the journey and is very proud of its ongoing work with the [advisory group].”

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Thomas’s comments following the resignation of advisory group member Assoc Prof Marlene Longbottom, who claimed she would not work with police again. Indigenous activist Gracelyn Smallwood also quit in protest in March, saying she no longer believed her work would lead to “necessary changes”.
An indigenous advisory board that the indigenous people on it are quitting because they feel nothing is being done. Pretty relevant at the moment.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
A key adviser to the Queensland police on First Nations issues says more urgency is required to fix racism in the ranks, amid concerns the service has failed to address widespread cultural problems exposed by a commission of inquiry.
“We need to stop approaching this as business as usual and [start] acting with a sense of urgency,” Thomas said, pointing to an “alarming number” of deaths in Queensland police custody this year.
The QPS responded to questions from Guardian Australia last week, including to suggestions by Longbottom that senior officers had been “hostile” towards dealing with real issues.
When asked about the response, Thomas said it exposed a major part of the problem: that police view engagement with Indigenous people as “performative” rather than seeking to collaborate or co-design reform, or address serious issues.
“The QPS needs to act with integrity and transparency and be highly visible in moving beyond performative gestures to taking real and substantial action to address these issues.
“The commissioner has always been candid that these relationships will take time to build meaningful trust and respect, however, the QPS is committed to the journey and is very proud of its ongoing work with the [advisory group].”
The original article contains 807 words, the summary contains 200 words. Saved 75%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!