The calls for change go back decades, even longer.
Some of those calls have yielded tangible results - from the Montgomery bus boycotts that led to the Supreme Court ruling segregated buses unconstitutional - to the Chicago Freedom Movement that spurred passage of the Fair Housing Act.

"This is a vast subject and it's going to take a whole lot of effort and a buy-in to make this change happen," says Tom Conley, head of the Greater Warren-Youngstown Urban League, adding that there's still a long way to go. In his mind, that effort and buy-in he speaks of is rooted in accountability.

"As far as the race conversation, I think we should do what Nelson Mandela did, and that was to, from a government standpoint, create a truth and reconciliation commission," says Conley. "There's an institute right now called Race Equity Institute that has models where they train communities in that subject."

Many local and national leaders are also re-examining the Task Force for 21st Century Policing - created by former President Barack Obama in 2015.
Given that police reform has been and will continue to be a work in progress, it provides ways to improve trust between police and the diverse communities they serve.

"We're not asking for unreasonable things," says Reverend Kenneth Simon, pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in Youngstown. He believes a key to better policing is applying the same standard to every person in every circumstance.

"There's no consistency, no universal policies," says Simon. "Which means I could be okay here and then go across Midlothian and run into a whole different scenario. It's mandatory that we wear body cameras and that they are functioning body cams."

Simon is also calling for mandatory diversity training before and after an officer is hired.
Local leaders say that diversity also must be reflected at the ballot box - and holding elected officials at every level to a higher standard.

"You can always vote somebody out and get somebody worse," said Conley, to which Simon adds "if they're not going to be the agents of change, they're part of the problem."

Jaladah Aslam, president of the Youngstown-Warren Black Caucus, has been working to get minorities - both young and old - more engaged in the election process.

"Everything is relative to somebody who was voted for or their appointee," Aslam says. "We just keep talking to them, keep reaching out to them in all the venues that we can."

A sometimes daunting, often tiring, but always noble task - moving a community and a nation toward achieving meaningful and lasting change.