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Tampa councilman, former cop passionate about change

Councilman Orlando Gudes was a Tampa police officer for 25 years before he became an elected official.

TAMPA, Fla. — Councilman Orlando Gudes was the man behind the unity.

On Saturday night as violent protests erupted around his city, Gudes called on black leaders in Hillsborough County to do something. Seven leaders jumped on a zoom call and came up with a joint plan.

The three-paragraph letter expressed both empathy and pain they're all feeling while also calling for peace and strategy.

RELATED: Black Tampa leaders on violence: 'We have to live here tomorrow'

10 Tampa Bay talked with Councilman Gudes and the six other leaders -- Sen. Darryl Rouson, State Rep. Dianne Hart, State Rep. Fentrice Driskell, State Rep. Wengay Newton, County Commissioner Les Millerand, and School Board Member Tamara Shamburger about their intention to create a task force to address violence in Tampa.

RELATED: Black leaders in Tampa Bay want to create a task force to address violence

Councilman Gudes represents District 5 in Tampa. He shared some of his insight from more than two decades serving as a Tampa police officer.

He believes we need more people at the table with diverse backgrounds to better understand each other's cultures before being confronted in a tense situation.

"A white police officer who lived in Avila his whole life, maybe went to a prominent high school, all white, he becomes a police officer, now he’s in the hood at 29th and Lake, how does he adjust? How does he know about that culture? He doesn’t," said Gudes. "He doesn’t know about that culture. All he knows is it’s a bad place, you be careful down there," he added.

Gudes believes a task force will address violence in the city of Tampa. When asked if Tampa has a violence problem, he said, "When I look at my black on black crime that’s rising, yea, that’s violence. People are dying. I don’t care how you look at that. When someone dies, that’s violence."

Since announcing plans for a task force, many people have contacted Gudes to participate.

RELATED: Sarasota police officer on leave after kneeling on man's neck, agency says

RELATED: Brothers ‘change the narrative’ after protests take a turn in Tampa

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