Law enforcement is supposed to keep us all safe. But communities of color are also concerned about being kept safe from law enforcement.
In many of our towns and cities, police officers feel—and sometimes even see themselves—more like an occupying force than community servants. Who can forget the 2014 images of police in Ferguson, Missouri perched on top of tanks, facing down people protesting the killing of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager? As these images gained traction in the news and on social media, the reality of militarized policing was broadcast across the country, waking up many people to a problem decades in the making: police and policymakers are treating our streets like de facto war zones.
Long before these images jolted our country’s consciousness, FCNL was lobbying members of Congress to end the government’s 1033 program, which allows police departments to receive free surplus military equipment. President Obama responded, constraining the transfer of military equipment from war zones to U.S. cities and criticizing the militarization of U.S. police forces. But President Trump is putting the U.S. back on the path of militarized policing. The new administration has authorized grenade launchers, bayonets, armored vehicles designed to withstand roadside explosives, and more to flow back into the hands of police officers. This equipment reinforces the threats that communities see in law enforcement, widening the gulf of distrust that separates police officers and the communities they are supposed to serve.
Thankfully, Congress is pushing back. Sen. Rand Paul (KY) has introduced bipartisan legislation to stop these weapons transfers. At the same time, Republicans and Democrats are working together to tackle the ways that racism and militarism permeate the entire criminal justice system, from police departments to courtrooms to jails and prisons. Senators Dick Durbin (IL) and Chuck Grassley (IA) recently re-introduced legislation to reform U.S. prison and sentencing laws. Their bill, which nearly passed in 2016, would give judges more discretion by rolling back mandatory minimum prison sentences that have clogged our judicial system and left thousands of nonviolent drug offenders languishing in prison. FCNL is leading lobbying efforts to support this legislation, particularly in the faith community. We have mobilized hundreds of grassroots advocates in the last several years to advocate for sentencing reform.
Sentencing practices that prioritize punishment and control disproportionately burden people of color, who are arrested more readily, sentenced more harshly, and treated less compassionately upon re-entry. Meanwhile, our country’s inefficient and expensive approach to law enforcement has come at the expense of resources for education, youth programs, mental health services, and other ways to address the root causes of crime. The Trump administration, led by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, is only making these problems worse. The president has proposed billions more for police crackdowns and militarization while cutting back on programs that serve communities and investigations into abuse by local police departments.
In November, FCNL organized a press conference in Rep. Bob Goodlatte’s central Virginia district to encourage him to act on sentencing reform. The speakers included the Rev. Aundreia Alexander, Esq., an associate general secretary of the National Council of Churches, who said, “We believe…all people were created by God. The system we have now is…a penal system that is predicated on retribution and punishment. Once you connect with that system, you have a life sentence no matter what the situation is. It’s not right.”
More than ever before, Congress needs to act to re-orient the U.S. justice and policing system towards protecting all people in all communities.