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In the Media

Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade, Ending 50 Years of Access To Safe Abortion

People across the country are reeling at the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision to overturn Roe — and what it will mean for women’s rights, privacy, and access to healthcare, especially in conservative states. Color Of Change President Rashad Robinson is quoted, “The court has no right to coerce Black people into parenting, especially given America’s long history of criminalizing Black bodies and communities. Black people, already profoundly impacted by abortion bans and disproportionately criminalized by the legal system, are sure to face the harshest levels of prosecution following today’s decision.” He continued, “Black people’s lives are at stake. Nothing will stop us from fighting for our freedom and continuing to build power for ourselves and our families.”

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Two Years After Floyd Murder, Racial Trauma Permeates US

This week marked the second anniversary of Floyd’s killing by a Minneapolis police officer, which sparked global protests and a racial justice reckoning. Floyd’s murder has taken a heavy toll on the emotional and mental health of Black communities. Just 1 in 3 Black Americans who need mental health help receives it and Black adults living below the poverty line are more than twice as likely to report serious psychological distress. Color Of Change President Rashad Robinson is quoted. “In Buffalo, we see people that look like our family and we’re forced to grapple with that… Having to take care of yourself, dealing with the trauma, and then thinking about how to engage in the path forward is work that we’ve had to do for generations,” he said. “And it is work that is stressful and tiring.”

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Racial Justice Groups Press Biden to Form Reparations Commission

Civil rights groups including Color Of Change, Black Voters Matter, and Human Rights Watch are pressing President Biden to use his executive authority to form a federal commission to study and develop reparations proposals for African Americans. Legislation calling for similar action has been stalled in Congress for a year. Republicans’ stranglehold on the Senate and looming midterms make it almost impossible Democrats will pass legislation this session. The coalition wrote to Biden, “Juneteenth is an important opportunity to commemorate the end of enslavement while recognizing much more needs to be done to create equity. The racial wealth gap remains vast, with white households having a median of $188,200 and Black households $24,100, a vestige of the legacy of enslavement—and the failure to address the exploitation, segregation, and violence unleashed on Black people that followed.”

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Helping Hollywood Avoid Claims of Bias Is Now a Growing Business

As the racial justice uprisings of 2020 becomes part of our culture, there’s a growing business in Hollywood — consultants who help studios make sure their movies don’t raise racist red flags. In recent years, entertainment execs have given promised diversity, but are still routinely fall short. Nonprofits including Color Of Change have experts hired to review everything from casting decisions and what characters get real depth and screen time to exposing racist or sexist tropes. COC President Rashad Robinson says bringing in outside consultants is great, but it’s not a substitute for true structural change in Hollywood. “This doesn’t change the rules with who gets to produce content and who gets to make the final decisions of what gets on the air. Across the entertainment industry there is still a problem in terms of not enough Black and brown people with power in the executive ranks.”

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Police Stops of Black People Often Filled With Fear, Anxiety

Video shows Patrick Lyoya disobeyed an officer during an April 4 traffic stop, tried to run, then wrestled with the officer over his Taser before the officer fatally shot him in Grand Rapids, Michigan. For a number of Black men and women, actions perceived as resisting arrest during minor traffic stops lead to their deaths. Color Of Change’s Sr. Director of Criminal Justice Scott Roberts is quoted. “Looking at police culture, there is pushback on the notion that policing is rooted in white supremacy and has been a tool of white supremacy. And so there is a kind of denial of why Black people would have that fear. You’ve already criminalized the person when you’re making a pre-textual stop. Your assumption is going to be that this is only a confirmation of their guilt, that fear.” Roberts added that these dynamics have increasingly led cities, prosecutors, and police to enact policies to end stops for minor infractions.

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Brooklyn Shooting Fuels Debate Over Whether Police Really Make Subways Safer

A recent shooting in New York City’s subways has re-sparked the debate over the effectiveness of more law enforcement when it comes to preventing violence and crime in the city. NYC Mayor Eric Adams — a former police officer who campaigned on a law-and-order platform — has unsurprisingly pledged to double the number of police in subways. But Color Of Change’s Director of Criminal Justice Scott Roberts questions this approach and the dangers it poses to Black and Brown New Yorkers. “Any time we see an act of violence that draws this much attention, we often see a doubling down in security culture. We’re addicted to that as a country. It makes us feel calm for the moment. What’s frightening is we know the ramifications are going to impact the communities that are already over-policed.”

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Thought Leadership

CNN: 3 Black Leaders Offer One Practical Solution to Reduce Police Assaults on Black Motorists

Color Of Change President Rashad Robinson contributes to this op-ed on the DOJ’s move to investigate Memphis police for their use and abuse of force, which led to the death of Tyre Nichols. Unnecessary traffic stops continue to kill Black people all the time. Of the more than 1,000 people killed by police each year, 10% involve traffic stops. Nearly half of these are for issues as minor as a broken taillight or tinted windows. There’s no reason to send armed cops to deal with these issues. He writes with the presidents of the Vera Institute for Justice and Center for American Progress, “As three Black men, we know firsthand the worry of whether the everyday act of driving will end in tragedy for ourselves, our brothers and sisters, or nieces and nephews and children… Changing the way traffic stops happen in this nation is foundational to any discussion about police reform. By reforming them, federal, state and local leaders can save countless lives.”

Read the full article at bit.ly/3ZY4FF8

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THE HILL: To Keep People Safe, Congress Should Invest in What Communities Need

Color Of Change’s Interim Vice President Sakira Cook writes alongside Civil Rights Corps’ Thea Sebastian about the rush to pour more money into policing. As politicians rush to pass “public safety” bills, pointing to rising crime rates and fears that violence is increasing, they rarely ask what communities want — or if these bills will do anything to keep them safer. Color Of Change recently released an evidence-based policy blueprint on the kinds of investments that prevent violence and harm. Its key insight is simple: just as in public health, prevention and proactive investments in the “social determinants of safety” are our most effective way to keep individuals, families, and communities safe. It’s time that our policies and reliance on heavy-handed policing give way to this reality.

Full article at bit.ly/3SRaUIn

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ESSENCE: Biden’s Plan to Increase Police Budgets Won’t Make Us Safer

Color Of Change’s Sakira Cook writes about how President Biden’s plan to increase police budgets is the opposite direction we ought to be headed — investing in community programs proven to keep communities safe. In a Philadelphia neighborhood, the addition of streetlights, painted sidewalks, public transit, and parks was tied to a 76% decrease in homicides. Summer job programs for young people have reduced their arrest rates for violent crimes by 45%. Meanwhile, over-policing Black and Brown neighborhoods just leads to more police violence. Biden plans to add 100,000 police officers to our streets and allocate $13 billion to the COPS hiring program. “Too many officials,” Sakira explains, “continue to implement a police-only approach to our safety – these solutions alone do not work and have proven to cause more harm to our safety and overall well-being.” It’s time for politicians to divest from this failed approach and advance real solutions to creating healthy, thriving, and safe communities.

Read the full article at bit.ly/3ZQueZ2

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TAMPA BAY TIMES: Warren’s Firing Hurt Black Residents in Hillsborough

Community activist and Color Of Change member Joyce Jackson writes about what Black people lost when the Hillsborough state attorney was unjustly ousted. Joyce’s son has been barred from voting since he was arrested at age 17 on a drug charge, even though he only was sentenced to probation, and at 41, has never been in trouble since. State Attorney Andrew Warren was a champion for people charged with nonviolent misdemeanors and oversaw a 69% reduction in the number of cases where children are tried as adults. He also stopped prosecution of minor bike citations when Tampa police were writing thousands of tickets for “biking while Black.” But after he stood up for abortion rights and Black women across the state, Gov. Ron DeSantis had him removed. He has sued to get his job back and judges now have the power to reinstate him.

Read the full article at bit.ly/3IH5TgM

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NEWSONE: Fulton Co. Prosecutors Share Blame For Jail Overcrowding

Color Of Change’s Vice President Sakira Cook writes about how Georgia’s Fulton County jails are so overcrowded that hundreds of people are malnourished and sleeping on the floor–waiting to learn their fates for minor offenses. Prosecutors have the unique power to fix overcrowding in what is, unsurprisingly, a predominantly Black area. Because of felony prosecutor Fani Willis’s inefficiency and indifference, half the jail population have not even been formally charged with a crime. Fulton County puts its residents behind bars at a rate nearly 3x other urban counties. It’s time to stop prosecuting minor offenses that pose no threat to public safety–unnecessarily costing people their jobs , their families, and their health.

Read the full article at bit.ly/3wE2slJ

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MIAMI HERALD: Don’t Ignore Effects of ‘Don’t say gay’ and ‘Stop WOKE’ on LGBTQ+ Students of Color

Color Of Change contributes to this op-ed on how LGBTQ+ students of color will be harmed by Florida’s new ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law. It will almost certainly erode the confidence of queer students and hurt their mental health. Multiple studies find students typically feel better about themselves and more supported by friends after coming out. Under ‘Don’t Say Gay,’ they’ll be forbidden to discuss gay issues at school while staff are encouraged to report LGBTQ students to their parents. States with LGBTQ+ friendly protections report less depression and isolation. And the opposite is true too. A few months in, it’s crucial we evaluate the impact of the law, especially alongside other harmful policies like the ‘Stop WOKE’ Act, which limits the discussion of race and gender in classes, furthering censoring and devaluing queer youth of color.

Read the full article at bit.ly/3wGUQig

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