Team, this is appalling:

Reports are coming out of Portland, Oregon and New York City that unidentified law enforcement in unmarked vehicles are arresting Black Lives Matter protesters.

Now, more than ever, we need to stand with protesters on the streets to declare that Black Lives Matter and to honor those who lost their lives to police violence. We need to fight to reimagine public safety and build a justice system that works for everyone.

When I ran for president, I backed the demilitarization of police. I called for an end to "broken windows" policing, and for an end to police in our schools. I pushed for greater investments in alternatives to criminalization, like mental health services and rehabilitation. I declared that police violence was gun violence, and I was the first presidential candidate to call for an end to qualified immunity.

I didn't just come up with those ideas, though. They were informed by conversations I had with the very communities who are all too often impacted by police violence. To make those ideas reality, we need to keep up the pressure and push our justice system — and our political system — in the right direction.

While elections alone will not solve the systemic issues we face, we need to do the work of electing candidates who will stand up to police unions and other powerful forces who continue to resist reform.

That's why I'm backing a group of reform-focused people first policing candidates: Ayanna Pressley, George Gascón, José Garza, and Kim Foxx. You can help us elect these candidates by making a gift to People First Future today.

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Together, let's send more candidates to office who will hold the police accountable, who will fight for reform, and who will honor the hard work and sacrifices of the protesters and organizers who have gotten us to this moment in history.

And, once they're in office, let's continue the hard work of fighting for a justice system that is truly just.

In solidarity,

Julián Castro

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