I’m Dorothy. I am a TakeAction leader and a disabled mother of five. I live in Richfield, and I grew up a mile away from where George Floyd was murdered by police.
We are living in a crisis in this state, where the people who are supposed to make us safe do not. For many communities, especially our Black and Brown neighbors, the police have never given them safety.
My community, the disabled community, has also never been safe from the police. Disabled people make up one-fourth to one-half of all people murdered by police. Police often see deafness, neurodivergence, dementia, physical disabilities, and mental illness as non-compliance. They are trained to view non-compliance as dangerous, and often use force as the first and only response.
I want to live in a state where my disabled children and I don’t have to be afraid of the very people that are supposed to provide us with safety. I want to live in a state where we respond to mental health struggles and disability challenges with community and care, not guns and tasers.
These provisions would establish civilian oversight of law enforcement; prohibit police officers from affiliating with, supporting, or advocating for white supremacist groups; limit so-called “pretextual stops” and no-knock warrants; and more.
These are basic measures that should have been taken long ago – and they are not enough. But state lawmakers must not go another year without taking action on public safety: not when they just voted to approve nearly $8 million in public resources for law enforcement with no strings attached.
It’s important state lawmakers hear from us now. They need to know: we expect action at the state level, and we have a bigger vision. Public safety should be based on community, care, and investing in what we need to thrive – not violence.
