The deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Nina Pop, and David McAtee have once again exposed the ugly truth about systemic racism and anti-Blackness in America. Justice is long past due for the countless Black Americans who have lost their lives to police brutality and white supremacist violence, and we stand in solidarity with those calling for an end to these injustices. We have joined our partners and allies in The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights to demand Congress to take the following actions to end police brutality immediately:
- Require a federal standard that necessitates police force be used only as a last resort; bans use of force against those who only verbally confront officers or who only pose a danger to themselves; and requires all officers to accurately report all uses of force.
- End the use of neck holds, chokeholds, and similar excessive force by the police.
- Prohibit racial profiling and require cross-demographic data collection on police-community encounters and law enforcement activities.
- Eliminate federal programs that provide military equipment to law enforcement.
- Prohibit the use of no-knock warrants, especially for drug searches.
- Change legal requirements so prosecutors can successfully hold law enforcement accountable for the deprivation of civil rights and civil liberties.
- Develop a national public database of all U.S. police agencies, including: names of officers who have had their licenses revoked due to misconduct involving violence, perjury, falsifying a police report, or planting and destroying evidence; and terminations and complaints against these officers.
- End the qualified immunity doctrine which prevents police from being held legally accountable when they break the law.
On April 20, 2021, Derek Chauvin was convicted on all three counts for the murder of George Floyd. Feminist Majority Foundation unequivocally supports the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021, which we see as an important step in ending police brutality. The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act addresses a wide range of policies and issues regarding law enforcement accountability and policing practices. The Act would ban chokeholds, limit qualified immunity, lower the criminal intent standard to convict a law enforcement officer for misconduct, and authorizes the Department of Justice to issue subpoenas in investigations of police departments for a practice of discrimination. The Act would also establish a national registry to compile data on police misconduct records. It has passed in the U.S. House, with all but two Democrats voting in favor and all but one Republicans voting against. It is currently being blocked by Republicans in the Senate.
Many of our supporters, affiliated student organizations, and members have already taken action by donating their money and/or time; protesting in their communities; educating their friends, families, and peers; participating in mutual aid efforts; amplifying Black voices on social media; and writing to elected officials and police department officials to push for legislative and policy change. Below are resources to help you continue (or start) taking action and stay in the fight against racial injustice. We have included racial justice and civil rights organizations who are doing this work everyday, as well as actions you can take right now and ways to further educate yourself on racial justice and allyship.
Donate:
African American Policy Forum (home of #SayHerName)
Black Youth Project 100 (BYP100)
Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
NAACP Legal and Education Defense Fund
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation
Take Action:
Justice for Breonna Taylor petition
Justice for David McAtee petition
Color of Change petition to end police brutality
Justice for Tony McDade petition
How To Support Black Trans People Right Now
Read:
On Being An Ally: Change is Necessary and Painful
75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
Why We Need To Call Out Casual Racism
Remember, No One is Coming to Save Us
Talking About Race: A Guide from the National Museum of African American History & Culture
Black People Need Stronger White Allies: Here’s How to Be One
A Bound Woman Is a Dangerous Thing: The Incarceration of African American Women from Harriet Tubman to Sandra Bland DaMaris Hill
Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do, Jennifer L. Eberhardt
Black is the Body, Emily Bernard
Citizen: An American Lyric, Claudia Rankine
Eloquent Rage, Brittney C. Cooper
Fatal Invention, Dorothy Roberts
Freedom is a Constant Struggle, Angela Y. Davis
From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor
From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime, Elizabeth Kai Hinton
Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot, Mikki Kendall
How to Be Less Stupid About Race, Crystal Marie Fleming
How We Fight White Supremacy, Akiba Solomon and Kenrya Rankin
How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective, edited by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor
Me and White Supremacy, Layla Saad
One Person, No Vote, Carol Anderson
Raising White Kids, Jennifer Harvey
Redefining Realness, Janet Mock
Reproductive Injustice: Racism, Pregnancy, and Premature Birth, Dána-Ain Davis
Sister Outsider, Audre Lorde
So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison
The Inner Work of Racial Justice, Rhonda V. Magee
The New Jim Crow, Michelle Alexander
The Racial Healing Handbook, Anneliese A. Singh
The Warmth of Other Suns, Isabel Wilkerson
Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston
Too Heavy A Load: Black Women in Defense of Themselves, Deborah G. White
Well-Read Black Girl, Glory Edim
When and Where I Enter, Paula Giddings
When They Call You A Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir, Patrisse Khan-Cullors
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard For White People To Talk About Racism, Robin DiAngelo
White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide, Carol Anderson
Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race, Reni Eddo-Lodge
Watch:
Dr. Robin DiAngelo Discusses White Fragility (YouTube)
Ijeoma Oluo: So You Want To Talk About Race (YouTube)