On June 9th, 2020 an article was released in which TPD Major Travis Yates said “Police Shoot Black Americans 'Less Than We Probably Ought To'”

This same article highlighted Yates’ history of aggressive racism

 “Yates is no stranger to racial controversy. In 2016, he faced criticism for an essay in which he declared American police were ‘at war’ and implied Black Lives Matter activists should not be allowed to visit the White House, a move that led TPD's then-chief, Chuck Jordan, to transfer Yates and express vocal disapproval and the group We The People Oklahoma to call for his resignation.

In another 2016 essay, titled ‘Follow Commands or Die,’ he assigned blame for police violence onto its victims, writing, ‘Would we even know where Ferguson was if Michael Brown would have simply got out of the street like the officer had asked him to do?’

In 2018, he suggested in an open letter to Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum that any disproportionate policing in Tulsa's black neighborhoods was a result of ‘fatherless homes’ and allegations of racism in policing are ‘dangerous’ and a ‘great scam.’”

Hold TPD accountable and demand Major Yates be removed from the force.