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| Friend, The war on drugs has fueled violent policing practices that have contributed to the police killings of Breonna Taylor and too many others. Under federal law, the 1033 program plays a major role by giving law enforcement free military equipment and other weapons in pursuit of waging the drug war in our communities. A bill was just introduced in the U.S. House that would end it: urge your Representative to abolish the 1033 program. The 1033 program is one of the most dangerous tools of the drug war – it allows for training police-like armies and turning our communities into war zones, and it drives violence and killings by law enforcement. Much of the support for militarized police has come from programs like 1033, which was created as a way to violently enforce drug prohibition. Billions of dollars worth of property has been transferred to law enforcement agencies, equipping them with battering rams, specialized firearms and large caliber weapons, armored vehicles, helicopters, and more. This equipment is used in day-to-day operations and especially in conducting SWAT raids. Most of these raids are carried out as part of drug investigations, like the one that killed Breonna Taylor, and disproportionately target Black and Latinx people. DPA has long advocated for abolishing the 1033 program as an important step toward ending the war on drugs. And the recent outrage over police killings of people like Breonna Taylor has led to Congress finally starting to scrutinize these dangerous programs and practices. Tell your Representative to support the new bill that would abolish the 1033 program and take a step toward ending drug war-fueled police militarization. For far too long, the drug war has enabled the use of aggressive and violent policing tactics to harm and claim countless lives. The time for federal reform is long overdue.
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