Recent events in our country have reminded us of how volatile our society remains when it comes to issues of race and how the police serve our communities. A new study has confirmed what many persons have believed to be true. African-Americans are far more likely than whites and other groups to be the victims of use of force by police, even when racial disparities in crime are taken into account. While the use of force by the police in encounters with civilians is remarkably low, when force is employed it is employed disproportionately against AfricanAmericans than other groups. This is why African-Americans have been demanding changes in how police officers are trained and supervised. These calls for reform have only intensified in light of recent shootings of African Americans where there has been a video of the encounter. Our society cannot ignore the fact that there are legitimate reasons for the African-American community to be suspicious of the police and to feel that the color of their skin makes them immediately suspect in the eyes of many police officers. The problem for the police is that within the last twenty years there has been an emphasis on the need for the police to be assertive and pro-active in order to prevent crime and uproot criminal activity that had become embedded in a particular community. Unfortunately, this strategy of aggressive policing was not balanced by a societal commitment to do more to address the social and economic forces that contribute to crime. In addition, we have stressed the importance of incarceration with no consideration as to what to do with those released from prison who require extensive intervention and assistance to re-integrate into society. The result has been to create a climate in which certain communities feel that their voices are not being heard, their needs are not being met, and they are the targets of discriminatory policing. As individuals and as a society, we need to engage in a sincere dialogue with persons of different races and social class so that we can help restore the badly frayed fabric of our society.