Dear Friend,

As we celebrate MLK Day and honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I cannot help but think of his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, in which Dr. King wrote:

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny."

In the wake of recent events in our nation’s capital and around our communities, Dr. King’s words ring as true as ever.

Earlier this month, we saw the shameful desecration of the United States Capitol, the undermining of American Democracy, and the deaths of six Americans—fueled at least in part by extremist and white nationalist views. Months before that, we witnessed the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, among so many other Black Americans who lost their lives as a result of prejudice and discrimination. And for nearly a year now, we’ve seen as the COVID-19 crisis has taken a disproportionate health and economic toll on Black Americans and Black-owned businesses alike.

I think we can all agree that our nation is in desperate need of the kind of justice Dr. King spent his life advocating – that’s why I remain committed to addressing injustice through action.

In the 116th Congress, I introduced the Justice in Policing Act with Sens. Cory Booker and Kamala Harris, and now that Democrats have regained control of the Senate, I’m going to keep fighting to get this legislation passed and onto the President’s desk. You can also bet that I’ll be working with the incoming administration to ensure timely and equal access to the COVID-19 vaccine.

Lastly, I believe there need to be consequences – not just for those who infiltrated our Capitol, but for President Trump, who helped foment the insurrection with his inflammatory rhetoric and blatant lies about the election.

Now more than ever, we must work to protect our democracy for the future and live up to the ideals that Dr. King set forth with his words and his activism.

You can count on me to keep working to help Virginians get through this tough time, together. If you want to share your thoughts about an issue that’s important to you, you can send me an email any time using the form on my Senate website. You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,