Placentia Library Director Message

Dear Placentia Library District Patrons,

Our country is hurting.

In the past weeks, we have been dealing with the relentless COVID-19 pandemic and its uncertainties. We are now agonizing over the senseless death of George Floyd and the aftermath of such injustice. What happened to Mr. Floyd has shaken the world.

Let us channel our anger and pain into something positive. Let our voices, and peaceful demonstrations show that justice can prevail. I am a strong believer that as a community we can be the change. Let us take the time to get to know our neighbors and fellow Americans better.

Recently I have had several conversations with our Police Chief. I invited him to share a message with you reaffirming his department’s commitment to protecting the safety of our residents and property. Please find below Chief Lenyi’s message.

Our team at Placentia Library District have never wavered on our commitment to serve people of all origins, age, background, and views. Your skin color, religious beliefs, ethnicity, political affiliations, etc. has no impact on the service you receive at our library. Our vision is guided by the principle of excellent customer service and human connections. Our mission is to bring people together. Our team enacts this mission through respect for human dignity and kindness. One way we can support change is by providing access to materials and resources educating us on the history and impacts of racism.

Below is a sample of current available titles on anti-racism:
• The Youngest Marcher
• Something Happened in our Town: A Child’s Story About Racial Injustice
• Not My Idea: A Book About Whiteness
• Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation
• Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You
• Let the Children March (Overdrive)
• A Good Kind of Trouble (Overdrive)
• The New Jim Crowe (Hoopla)
• Exposing Hate (Hoopla)
• Me and White Supremacy (Hoopla)
• Between the World and Me (Hoopla)

As your library, you have our promise to advance diversity, inclusion, and equity. As a community, each of us is responsible for re-shaping our great nation and ending systematic racism. I believe we can.

Let the healing begin.

Sincerely,
Jeanette Contreras
Library Director

Placentia Police Chief Lenyi Message

Like others across the nation, my Department and I are troubled by the death of Mr. George Floyd at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis. We too feel the outrage of this situation and were shocked at the action of one officer and the inaction of others at the scene.  What is depicted on that video is completely counter to how we train our officers, what we expect from them and what we stand for.  Although it does not bring Mr. Floyd back, we were glad to see the former officer in this case was arrested and will be held accountable.  Nobody hates bad cops more than good cops!    

It is understandable that some wanted to protest over this incident to raise concerns regarding social injustices in our nation.  Unfortunately, some have turned peaceful protests into riots and have committed acts of violence, theft and destruction.  This takes away from the message peaceful protestors are trying to convey.  These actions are destructive to our communities, business owners, first responders and those trying to peacefully protest.  We value our relationship with the community and risk our lives keeping it safe; rest assured we will continue to do this. 

The City and Placentia Police Department are committed to the delivery of compassionate and professional police services.  My officers and I deeply care for our community members.  We have a selective hiring practice, which includes a thorough background investigation, polygraph examination and physiological screening.  We do not hire anyone with a history or propensity for violence or racism.  Officers go through an extensive training program, which includes de-escalation techniques.  We continually seek ways to improve our service through critical analysis, evaluation and feedback.  We hold ourselves accountable and have a Professional Standards Bureau to thoroughly investigate complaints.

The men and women of the Placentia Police Department respect the constitutional rights of all people and stand ready to protect our community.  We will continue our commitment to working with you to build strong relationships of trust and to keeping Placentia a pleasant place to live, work and visit.  

Please stay safe and healthy,

Chief Darin Lenyi
Placentia Police Department