Dear MoveOn member,
Overfunding police departments has not made America safer or better; in fact, it has taken away crucial resources from basic infrastructure and social safety net programs.1
In 2019, the Washington, D.C., government allocated more money to police and corrections than to programs for jobs, young people, and mental health combined. Even though D.C. is facing a $1.5 billion revenue loss for the current and upcoming fiscal years due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Metropolitan Police Department could see its budget increase to well over half a billion dollars, if the D.C. Council approves Mayor Bowser's proposal.2
The coronavirus pandemic has laid bare D.C.'s staggering income inequality and the inequitable access to housing and health care. Instead of providing social programs, addressing racial and class inequality, and confronting the underlying causes of poverty and violence, the D.C. government continues to overfund its police department in an effort to appear tough on crime.
Police departments with bloated budgets are not solving the problems plaguing our communities.
Local governments should defund police departments that are using their huge budgets to implement policies that increase harassment, arrests, and police violence, especially in Black communities and other communities of color.3
If police departments are defunded, the money could be used to fund initiatives that will ensure our safety, security, and well-being, without the violence and racism inherent in the criminal justice system. Without unnecessary spending on policing, governments would be able to fund education and employment, ensure access to housing and food, provide social services, and institute effective community-led health and safety strategies.
Will you start a MoveOn petition calling on Mayor Muriel Bowser and other Washington, D.C., lawmakers to cut the D.C. police department's massive budget and use that money to support D.C.'s social and human services that are desperately needed, especially during a devastating pandemic?
This seems like an important moment for members of the public to act—but first a local member like you needs to take the lead by launching a campaign on MoveOn's online petition site. If you get the petition started, we'll give you support and help you keep it going. Will you take the lead?
Yes, please help me start this petition.
I can't start the petition, but I would like to take action on it if someone else does.
MoveOn members like you are leading and winning campaigns all over the country, using the tools and resources that MoveOn provides. Together, we can run and win more campaigns and mobilize for a better society—one where everyone can thrive.
Thanks for all you do.
–Isbah, Arvin, Tillie, Erica, and the rest of the team
P.S. If this issue doesn't interest you, but you want to create a petition about another important issue, click here.
Sources:
1. "Freedom to Thrive: Reimagining Safety & Security in Our Communities," The Center for Popular Democracy, July 4, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/134614?t=11&akid=265934%2E40999114%2Elg8Do-
2. "The Movement To Defund D.C. Police," Washington City Paper, June 4, 2020
https://act.moveon.org/go/137257?t=13&akid=265934%2E40999114%2Elg8Do-
3. "Democrats are ignoring a key piece of criminal justice reform — slicing police budgets," The Washington Post, January 16, 2020
https://act.moveon.org/go/134613?t=15&akid=265934%2E40999114%2Elg8Do-
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