At the Claremont City Council Meeting on Tuesday, October 25th, 2016, the council unanimously voted to adopt a resolution formally opposing Proposition 57. Councilmembers may hold personal views, but with an absence of evidence supporting the council’s claim of a causal relationship between Prop 47/AB109 and the increase in crime, to take a formal stance on this consequential ballot proposition is unprofessional. Given the lack of representation of community members in favor of Proposition 57, to suggest that Prop 57 would compromise the safety of Claremont residents is undemocratic. Furthermore, the timing of this resolution, which is exactly two weeks before the General Election, calls to question the intent of the Chief of Police and the council as a whole as an unrepresentative political body.

We demand that the council rescind adoption of the resolution and take further steps to ensure the greater community is represented in the future.

Below is a list of supporting community organizations within the Claremont community:  

Democratic Club of Claremont

Pitzer College Community Engagement Center

Young Progressives Demanding Action

Pitzer College Student Choices Student Voices

Inland Congregations United for Change

League of Women Voters Claremont

Claremont Progressives

Prison Abolition Club