June, 17 2020, 12:00am EDT
Senate Republican Policing Bill Fails to Deliver Transformative Change
Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the introduction of the Senate Republican policing "reform" legislation, the JUSTICE Act:
WASHINGTON
Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the introduction of the Senate Republican policing "reform" legislation, the JUSTICE Act:
"The Senate Republican bill falls painfully short in addressing longstanding issues of police misconduct and state-sanctioned violence. The legislation fails to pay down the immeasurable debt to justice created by our legacy of systemic racism. While we appreciate Senator Scott's efforts, the proposal does not go nearly far enough to offer the bold, comprehensive changes necessary to achieve the transformation and increased police accountability that this moment demands. Congress needs to take the bold action that is required now for real police accountability and federal standards to save lives.
"We urge lawmakers to put aside their partisan blinders and work together to deliver meaningful accountability reflected in the framework The Leadership Conference sent to Congress. We need a fundamental shift in our policing culture, and to ultimately ensure funding significantly invests in Black communities and those that are over-criminalized and under-resourced. The people have issued a clarion call to action that Congress must answer."
BACKGROUND
The Leadership Conference and more than 450 other civil rights organizations recently called on Congressional leadership to swiftly rectify the legacy of white supremacy and anti-Black racism that has led to police violence against Black people across our country.
The Leadership Conference, along with its sister organization, The Leadership Conference Education Fund, previously launched the New Era of Public Safety initiative featuring tools to increase trust, fairness, justice, and mutual respect between police departments and the communities they serve. In 2019, the organization launched the Vision for Justice platform that calls for a holistic reimagining of public safety and outlines how we create healthy, inclusive, and safe communities. That platform calls on us to adopt a transformative vision for how we evaluate and determine public safety priorities, while also ending mass incarceration and criminalization.
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the civil and human rights of all persons in the United States. Through advocacy and outreach to targeted constituencies, The Leadership Conference works toward the goal of a more open and just society - an America as good as its ideals.
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