These announcements are part of a week-long 10-year anniversary campaign called “Defund The Police Week.”
Washington, D.C. — Today, the Black Lives Matter Foundation (BLM Foundation) announced an innovative campaign called the “Defund the Police Week of Action,” tied to the 10-year anniversary of the Black Lives Matter movement on Thursday, July 13th.
Defund the Police Week is about centering true justice, joy, and humanity over criminalization by affirmatively promoting the Community Safety Legislative and Appropriations Agenda, a joint project of more than 50 civil rights, public health, racial justice, housing, violence prevention, economic justice, and allied organizations nationwide. BLM Foundation will use the week to challenge social norms around handling crime and public safety and to push Congress and local elected officials to support critical legislation.
Shalomyah Bowers, a board member for BLM GNF, said the following about Defund the Police Week:
“This week, we are doing more than celebrating 10 years as a movement—we are taking action toward reaching our goal of Black liberation and showcasing what Black Lives Matter means. Defund The Police Week is meant to answer an important question: What has Black Lives Matter accomplished? Our intention is to answer the question simply—this week we are demonstrating that one of the main pillars of progress in our short 10 years as a modern-day civil rights movement is that we have made our demand, to defund the police, a politically popular and achievable mainstream demand. The new global center court is a core abolitionist policy articulation; divest from police and invest in us.”
To kick off the week of action, BLM Foundation released a new ad today. Called “It’s Still Defund the Police,” the ad emphasizes the importance of the global demand that 26 million people protested for in 2020, calling for real systemic change that protects all communities, not just a wealthy, powerful few.
D’Zhane Parker, a board member of BLM Foundation, said the following:
“As we continue our push to defund the police, invest in Black communities, and reimagine safety in our communities, we need our elected officials to focus on the people, not the police. The safest places around the world don’t have more police, more jails, more prisons, or harsher sentences. They have better access to economic opportunities, quality education, stable housing, and health care.”
As a way to honor the countless Black folks who have been injured, attacked, murdered, and impacted by police and vigilante violence, BLM Foundation is declaring July 13th Black Lives Matter Day. Reach out to your local, state, and/or federal politicians and encourage them to introduce a proclamation that acknowledges the abuses Black people have endured, speaks to the origins of the Black Lives Matter movement with the acquittal of George Zimmerman after his murder of Trayvon Martin, and remembers the lives of those who have been murdered by state-sanctioned and vigilante violence. Nearly 10 cities across the country have already made plans to codify Black Lives Matter Day as a national day of remembrance, and many more will follow suit.
Cicley Gay, a board member of BLM GNF said the following about the new Black Lives Matter National Day on July 13th: “Our lives matter—period. If we can dedicate days to presidents who upheld slavery and racism, we can dedicate a day to the Black lives stolen at the hands of the state and racial terrorists.”
Throughout the week, BLM Foundation will highlight the numerous reasons why funding the police doesn’t work, why militarizing the police doesn’t work, and why state-sanctioned violence enforces modern forms of slavery for Black people. We are challenging us all to work to create a new system of care, where Black people have all that they need to thrive.
Join us in uplifting the movement by signing the proclamation today!
