Andrew,
We've said it plenty of times before:
Mattering is the minimum. Black people deserve to thrive. To live life to the fullest. To be able to ride our bikes or have a cookout in peace. To be fully liberated and free.
On Monday, Rep. Cori Bush released her bill The People's Response Act, which envisions a new future for public safety. And it's past the time for a public safety transformation, Andrew.
True public safety means investing in communities and addressing the root causes of poverty, rather than policing the poor. Public safety means we proactively prevent violence through community empowerment -- not through scare tactics, fear, or state-sanctioned violence by police.
Rep. Bush's vision is more than just words on a paper -- it's something we all need to work proactively to accomplish.
Because in a world where public safety is actually public safety, Black people will be liberated. Black people will thrive. Black people will matter -- plus so much beyond that. That's why we need you to raise your voice and take action, Andrew. Today we want to flood social media with messages of our new visions of public safety. Will you post with the hashtag #SafetyIs and share your personal thoughts? As Rep. Bush put it: "The vestiges of slavery continue to deny us reparations, liberation and freedom." The United States has yet to right its wrongs when it comes to Black people. Across the entire country, we are disenfranchised in every aspect of our democracy and life. Whether it be health care, voting rights, incarceration, or education -- we have been blatantly discriminated against and plagued by systemic racism for too long.
The evidence is there: Non-carceral, non-punitive interventions work. Investing time, care, and resources into our communities creates safer spaces for neighborhoods and expands opportunities -- opportunities to thrive.
We're beyond grateful for the work that Rep. Bush has put into laying out a transformation of public safety in the People's Response Act. And now, it's on all of us to do the work to make this vision a reality. We know raising our voices online has an impact -- it can change narratives and rally people to our cause. So please, share your feelings on #SafetyIs to help fuel the work to pass the People's Response Act. This is the beginning of the public safety transformation that we desperately need.
In love and solidarity,
Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation
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