'There is No Magic Answer': Williams On Stop-and-Frisk

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Williams, notably the only person of color among the forum's four panelists, said he didn't object to the existence of "stop, question and frisk," but to the way it is used in black and Hispanic communities. 

John Feinblatt, Mayor Bloomberg's chief advisor for policy and strategic planning, was carrying water all night on behalf of his boss, and often felt the brunt of Williams' sometimes sarcastic jabs.

At one point, he noted the number of stops police initiated because of "furtive movements" by an individual.

"I have Tourette Syndrome, every time I walk out of the house I'm black making furtive movements," Williams said. 

The two crossed rhetorical swords frequently, with Feinblatt at one point praising the practice for the thousands of guns police have confiscated as a result. Williams was unmoved. 

"If they wanted to break up the Italian mafia, they wouldn't stop every Italian," the councilman said. "We get more guns off of random stops than we do in 'stop, question and frisk.'"

Their argument was particularly pointed because of Police Commissioner Ray Kelly's recent claim that "stop, question and frisk" has gone down as crime has gone down — because of "stop, question and frisk."

Needless to say, Williams did not agree.

The panel — which was frequently interrupted by microphone interference that picked up what seemed to be a nearby poetry slam across the street — also delved into other topics. 

When asked about whether the NYPD should be subject to an Inspector General, Williams called it a kind of bare minimum.

"It's not a panacea, it by itself is not the answer," he said. "But there's nothing in there that's not [already present] in 300 other agencies."