Some say New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio had “blood on his hands” after a black man fatally shot two policemen in Brooklyn on Dec. 20.

The mayor had said that he frequently warned his mixed-race, teenage son about the “dangers he may face” during police encounters, according to various media reports. He also said he understands protesters who have vilified the police as being hostile to black citizens.

Following public outrage, de Blasio met with the leaders of police unions this week after his comments angered police.

What’s happening in New York City marks the latest in a string of incidents nationwide involving racism and police brutality.

And Federal Way is not immune to these issues.

In this edition, you will read about two of the latest civil lawsuits filed against the Federal Way school district and police department. One of the lawsuits alleges racism against the school district, while the other alleges excessive police force against the police department.

Now these are only allegations and only a judge or jury can say whether they happened or not.

But this is not the first time these claims have come about in my one year as editor, nor will it be the last. And it’s indicative that there is a systemic problem, here in Federal Way and elsewhere.

With a nation in turmoil over the death of people like Michael Brown, Eric Brown and officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, every city should be looking in the mirror and asking how, why and what we as a community can do to prevent the physical and emotional pain of discrimination and abuse of power.

Andre Sims, the senior pastor for Christ the King Bible Fellowship in Federal Way, hopes to find a way to bring the community together in prayer to combat these issues.

And he’s made strides after just completing the first rally for community peace on Wednesday, New Year’s Eve. The rally was led by at least 20 local pastors across various denominations at Federal Way’s City Hall.

“In the faith community, we want all the constituents of our community — families, law enforcement, businesses, students, young people — we want our entire community to know that we believe that prayer and peace is something that is obtainable and available for all of us,” Sims said.

While I am not advocating that religion is the answer to these complex, universal issues, I do commend Sims and these local pastors for trying to address them in a positive way.

The community needs more movements like this that will ultimately bring people together.

“At the end of the day, we want to be unified,” Sims said.