Demand Racial Justice. Defund HPD

Howdy Comrade,

In the last week in Houston, four days of peaceful actions have received positive media coverage and approval from high-ranking officials. At the same time, HPD has arrested over 500 protesters outside of city-sanctioned events, often at night, using statements like “this protest is no longer peaceful” to justify spraying protesters with tear gas and mace, kettling them, and charging them with horses.

Since April 21, HPD officers have shot and killed six people. Despite calls for transparency, no bodycam footage has been released. If Turner and Acevedo say we need meaningful reform, let’s do it — move money from HPD’s budget into community health and housing.

Houston City Council votes on the next budget on Wednesday, June 10. Join us to echo the calls of Black organizers in Houston and across the country and demand they pass a budget that reallocates funds from HPD toward Housing & Community Development and Health Departments. These funds must bolster existing programs for affordable housing, social services, public health, public education, childcare, and other supports that will bolster communities of color.

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