June 1, 2020
Heart of LA Democratic Club Statement
in Solidarity with the African American Community
The Heart of LA Democratic Club stands in solidarity with the California Democratic Party African American Caucus and our brothers and sisters across the nation, in denouncing the heinous and systemic racial violence inflicted on members of the Black community and the pain and suffering inflicted on their families.
We call for righteous justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and for the countless Black women and men who are victims of law enforcement and a criminal justice system that has failed to recognize the value of their lives, time and time again.
These injustices are not new. They have been happening beneath our feet and in front of our eyes.
We formed the Heart of LA Democratic Club to achieve a community that is responsive to and responsible for the needs of all people; a diverse, welcoming and just society, where all of us are free to pursue “liberty and justice for all” without fear or retribution.
We will not be silent. Systemic injustice calls for systemic change now. Being actively anti-racist is on all of us. We are committed to amplifying the voices of Black leaders and taking action to fight the persistent racism and inequality that pervades this country, through legislative reform, local activism and by educating ourselves, our members, and others in our lives.
So we call upon our members to engage in pushing back against these worst parts of our democracy. Use your voice, use your vote, use your dollars in supporting and lifting up the Black community and the organizations doing the vital work on the ground, and in holding our elected officials responsible for their words and their actions.
Consider supporting –
Here are some ways you can take action now –
We call for righteous justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and for the countless Black women and men who are victims of law enforcement and a criminal justice system that has failed to recognize the value of their lives, time and time again.
These injustices are not new. They have been happening beneath our feet and in front of our eyes.
We formed the Heart of LA Democratic Club to achieve a community that is responsive to and responsible for the needs of all people; a diverse, welcoming and just society, where all of us are free to pursue “liberty and justice for all” without fear or retribution.
We will not be silent. Systemic injustice calls for systemic change now. Being actively anti-racist is on all of us. We are committed to amplifying the voices of Black leaders and taking action to fight the persistent racism and inequality that pervades this country, through legislative reform, local activism and by educating ourselves, our members, and others in our lives.
So we call upon our members to engage in pushing back against these worst parts of our democracy. Use your voice, use your vote, use your dollars in supporting and lifting up the Black community and the organizations doing the vital work on the ground, and in holding our elected officials responsible for their words and their actions.
Consider supporting –
- Black Lives Matter: Los Angeles - https://www.gofundme.com/f/blmla
- The Bail Project - https://bailproject.org/
- Southern Poverty Law Center - https://www.splcenter.org/
- NAACP Legal Defense Fund - https://www.naacpldf.org/
- Black Women for Wellness - https://www.bwwla.org
Here are some ways you can take action now –
- Anti-racism Resources – https://bit.ly/3eBCUdH
- Anguish and Action - https://www.obama.org/anguish-and-action/
- How to Safely and Ethically Film Police Misconduct - https://bit.ly/2ZVkDnN
- ACLU Know Your Protester Rights - https://bit.ly/2AwuPrV
- 10 Tips for Teaching and Talking to Kids About Race – https://www.embracerace.org/resources/teaching-and-talking-to-kids
- 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice - https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-white-people-can-do-for-racial-justice-f2d18b0e0234
- 18 Women of Color on What "Self-Care" Looks Like in the Age of Isolation - https://www.byrdie.com/self-care-isolation-4843502
#BlackLivesMatter and making change is on all of us.
Following is the message from the California Democratic Party's African American Caucus.
Members of the African American Caucus and Concerned Americans:
Everyday we mourn the senseless deaths of innocent black men and women, we fear for our children, our young men and our families. We mothers, we sisters and we brothers of black men. We wonder who is next while at the same time hoping that the next time will never come - but yet again it has.
Today, we mourn the senseless death of yet another unarmed Black man, whose life did not matter and whose rights were violated by a man in blue, wearing a badge, an officer sworn to “Serve and Protect.” That man was George Floyd.
We the African American Caucus are not only deeply saddened but we are furious! Furious at a system that is broken, furious at Americans who are not equally as disturbed and furious at policies that fail to appropriately govern and do not discipline those officers who break the law.
Will Smith said it best when he said “Racism is not getting worse, it’s getting filmed.”
When a Black man dies by the hands of police officers while being filmed and officers are not charged, it reinforces a form of institutionalized racism that says it is okay to kill first and deny later. Why are the rights of Black Americans being violated on the street, in their homes and even while on camera? When one American is executed by the judge and jury of one officer, that American has been stripped of his right to due process. According to the law, the officer is just one of the first steps in civil and criminal processing. So why are death sentences being ordered on our streets? Who can Black America expect to protect us, our rights and our lives?
On Monday,May 25th, George Floyd was murdered at the hands of armed police officers, who insisted on using excessive and unnecessary force. This is not the first time a man pleaded with Men in Blue to please just let me breathe, before being forced to die on the street while bystanders watched and recorded.
George repeated over and over again, “I can’t breathe,” until he breathed his last breath.
Despite these pleas and even the cries of bystanders who begged the officers to release him, the officer rocked back and forth applying fatal pressure to Floyd’s neck, while another officer passively stood close by unmoved. Floyd ultimately lost consciousness and died.
We will not just sit and watch silently, but will continue to fight for equity, justice and the lives of all Black people. How many times will the police be allowed to execute Black people for all to see? How many more times will our human rights be violated? We say NO MORE! George Floyd is our son, he is your brother and he is someone’s father.
We can no longer allow privileged men in uniform to continue to commit genocide on our streets in the name of self defense and call it justice! We will no longer wait for more tragedies to terrorize the Black community, to threaten and take our lives, our children, fathers, sisters, mothers, brothers and friends because they feel threatened by the color of our skin. #BLACKLIVESMATTER
We, the California Democratic Party African American Caucus, are calling on the Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo to arrest and conduct a full investigation of all officers involved in Floyd’s death for murder.
Today we fight back, and we also ask our allies, and partners in the California Democratic Party to join us, in this effort.
In Solidarity for Black Lives,
Honorable Taisha Brown, Chair
African American Caucus
California Democratic Party
Members of the African American Caucus and Concerned Americans:
Everyday we mourn the senseless deaths of innocent black men and women, we fear for our children, our young men and our families. We mothers, we sisters and we brothers of black men. We wonder who is next while at the same time hoping that the next time will never come - but yet again it has.
Today, we mourn the senseless death of yet another unarmed Black man, whose life did not matter and whose rights were violated by a man in blue, wearing a badge, an officer sworn to “Serve and Protect.” That man was George Floyd.
We the African American Caucus are not only deeply saddened but we are furious! Furious at a system that is broken, furious at Americans who are not equally as disturbed and furious at policies that fail to appropriately govern and do not discipline those officers who break the law.
Will Smith said it best when he said “Racism is not getting worse, it’s getting filmed.”
When a Black man dies by the hands of police officers while being filmed and officers are not charged, it reinforces a form of institutionalized racism that says it is okay to kill first and deny later. Why are the rights of Black Americans being violated on the street, in their homes and even while on camera? When one American is executed by the judge and jury of one officer, that American has been stripped of his right to due process. According to the law, the officer is just one of the first steps in civil and criminal processing. So why are death sentences being ordered on our streets? Who can Black America expect to protect us, our rights and our lives?
On Monday,May 25th, George Floyd was murdered at the hands of armed police officers, who insisted on using excessive and unnecessary force. This is not the first time a man pleaded with Men in Blue to please just let me breathe, before being forced to die on the street while bystanders watched and recorded.
George repeated over and over again, “I can’t breathe,” until he breathed his last breath.
Despite these pleas and even the cries of bystanders who begged the officers to release him, the officer rocked back and forth applying fatal pressure to Floyd’s neck, while another officer passively stood close by unmoved. Floyd ultimately lost consciousness and died.
We will not just sit and watch silently, but will continue to fight for equity, justice and the lives of all Black people. How many times will the police be allowed to execute Black people for all to see? How many more times will our human rights be violated? We say NO MORE! George Floyd is our son, he is your brother and he is someone’s father.
We can no longer allow privileged men in uniform to continue to commit genocide on our streets in the name of self defense and call it justice! We will no longer wait for more tragedies to terrorize the Black community, to threaten and take our lives, our children, fathers, sisters, mothers, brothers and friends because they feel threatened by the color of our skin. #BLACKLIVESMATTER
We, the California Democratic Party African American Caucus, are calling on the Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo to arrest and conduct a full investigation of all officers involved in Floyd’s death for murder.
Today we fight back, and we also ask our allies, and partners in the California Democratic Party to join us, in this effort.
In Solidarity for Black Lives,
Honorable Taisha Brown, Chair
African American Caucus
California Democratic Party
About the Heart of LA Democratic Club
Founded in March 2017 on the heels of the Presidential election, the Heart of L.A. Democratic Club was created in recognition of the growing awareness within the Democratic Party that women should be fully and equally represented in local, state, and national politics. The Heart of L.A. Democratic Club is open to all Democrats who subscribe to the club’s goals and purposes regardless of their gender identity. The mission of the Heart of L.A. Democratic Club is to help make the Democratic Party and its elected officials responsive to, and responsible for, the needs of all people, particularly, though not exclusively, women in our community. In addition to endorsing candidates and organizing for those candidates, the Heart of L.A. Democratic Club actively participates in issues advocacy, community outreach, and voter education. The Club’s monthly meetings feature guest speakers such as Democratic elected officials and candidates, and experts in policy areas of interest to women - including reproductive justice, homelessness, voter registration, immigration, criminal justice reform and more.
For more information about The Heart of LA Democratic Club, visit:
Website: HeartLADems.org.
Facebook: Facebook.com/HeartLADems
Twitter: @HeartLADems
Instagram: @HeartLADems
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Founded in March 2017 on the heels of the Presidential election, the Heart of L.A. Democratic Club was created in recognition of the growing awareness within the Democratic Party that women should be fully and equally represented in local, state, and national politics. The Heart of L.A. Democratic Club is open to all Democrats who subscribe to the club’s goals and purposes regardless of their gender identity. The mission of the Heart of L.A. Democratic Club is to help make the Democratic Party and its elected officials responsive to, and responsible for, the needs of all people, particularly, though not exclusively, women in our community. In addition to endorsing candidates and organizing for those candidates, the Heart of L.A. Democratic Club actively participates in issues advocacy, community outreach, and voter education. The Club’s monthly meetings feature guest speakers such as Democratic elected officials and candidates, and experts in policy areas of interest to women - including reproductive justice, homelessness, voter registration, immigration, criminal justice reform and more.
For more information about The Heart of LA Democratic Club, visit:
Website: HeartLADems.org.
Facebook: Facebook.com/HeartLADems
Twitter: @HeartLADems
Instagram: @HeartLADems
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