The deaths of two African-Americans at the hands of police officers in Louisiana and Minnesota and five Dallas police officers dead, killed by a man out for revenge, has left much of the nation tense and divided.

Two Vicksburg leaders shared their take on race relations’ impact here.

State Rep. Oscar Denton, D-Vicksburg, said Vicksburg’s size allows the city to avoid many of the issues larger cities are facing.

“Being a small community, I don’t think we have the problem like metropolitan areas. It’s kind of different with us, and I think we’re better off for that,” he said.

John Shorter, president of the Vicksburg branch of the NAACP, said a disproportionate public outcry exists between the death of the Dallas police officers and the deaths caused by police.

“You have outrage about the five officers killed, but you cannot get a decent statistic on how many questionable shootings there are for any citizens, not to mention African-Americans,” Shorter said. “There’s something out of whack there.”

Shorter attributed the nation’s issues to a lack of policies that he would also like to see implemented locally, including a registry of citizens’ deaths caused by police officers and a requirement that police officers let people know why they are being pulled over before asking for a license or registration.

“From the administration to the chief, never telling them that they need to identify the reason for the stop, they have an open book on what they can do, what they can’t do, and they’ll make it up as they go,” he said. “On every questionable shooting, you have different reasons why the individual was stopped.”

He also noted his belief that the city receiving revenue from traffic tickets encourages officers to pull drivers over without a valid cause.

“(Eliminating that) would eliminate a lot of harassment,” he said. “The police department is not in place to make money.”

Shorter attributed Vicksburg’s relative calm compared to other cities to the work of the NAACP.

“Because of the history with the of the NAACP, there’s a very low ceiling for what the individual will put up with here in Vicksburg. That’s why you don’t get a lot of that,” he said.

Denton said he has never personally had any issues with local law enforcement and hopes others have had similar experiences to his.

“In light of everything going on today, they have difficult job,” he said. “I think they have a grasp on their departments, and they’re out in the community. That’s the key: to know the community and have the community know them.”

Denton advised residents to “take a breath” and remember that violence doesn’t solve anything.

“We just need to talk about these issues,” he said. “Everyone in the country knows race is an issue, but we don’t talk about it. Until we have an open dialogue about it, it will continue to happen.”

Denton said he would be attending a community-wide meeting to discuss – support for local law enforcement and improving police/community relations – Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Vicksburg Housing Authority community center, 113 Elizabeth Circle.

“We have invited the police chief, mayor and the sheriff to speak,” Rev. Manney Murphy, coordinator of the event, said.