John,
Divestment from law enforcement and investment in our communities have been at the root of our fight for the future of Black lives. And on Wednesday evening, the new Biden administration displayed their willingness to acknowledge our fight and our movement.
On his first night in office, President Biden signed a flurry of executive actions that include key provisions inspired by the BREATHE Act -- which Black leaders asked for during transition meetings with the new administration.
While there’s still a lot of work to be done, this is an important step forward in our fight for passing the BREATHE Act and directly because of
your efforts.
We will continue to hold the new administration to the highest standards of accountability on their promises of racial justice.
According to administration officials, these new executive actions will:
- Require all federal agencies to make equity a central factor in their work -- including delivering reports within 200 days to address how to remove barriers to opportunities in policies and programs
- Direct federal agencies to conduct reviews looking to eliminate systemic discrimination in their policies and to reverse historic discrimination in safety net and other federal spending
- Create a working group examining federal data collection on diversity grounds
This is a major win for Black lives and Black futures, John. The entire movement has been working tirelessly on various initiatives that are mimicked in the executive order that President Biden signed Wednesday.
John, we have to say it again: This wouldn't have happened without your advocacy. Without millions of people taking to the streets and proudly proclaiming: Black Lives Matter, period.
Every donation, retweet, phone call and petition signed made a difference. And while there's still so much work to be done, we must take the time to celebrate this win.
Now, we get right back to work to pass the BREATHE Act and divest our taxpayer dollars from brutal and discriminatory policing to investments in a new vision of public safety.
In love and solidarity,
Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation
