The Law Enforcement Accountability Network (LEAN) was created in early 2021 by a small group of grassroots organizers in Duluth. The spark for LEAN came from a collective recognition that many groups and individuals were doing good work for police accountability, but that communication and collaboration between initiatives was a challenge for everyone. At the same time, members of what would become the LEAN team were analyzing data from the Duluth Police Department that gave numbers to what Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Duluthians have said for decades: there is systemic racism in local policing that must be addressed immediately.

In the final months of 2020, several of us conducted an informal conversation process with local organizers working on police accountability. In those conversations, we heard requests for the sorts of tools and resources that would most effectively connect and support organizers. Following a presentation of the conversation process findings in January 2021, we launched the LEAN website and listserv.

LEAN is a grassroots data analysis group and public communications resource for organizers working for police accountability. We are volunteer-run and are always looking for hard-working and committed individuals of all backgrounds and experience levels for our team. If you would like to support LEAN's work, please email us at LEANDuluth@gmail.com.