The shocking death of George Floyd sparked a lot of questions and protests calling for sweeping changes to law enforcement, including the nation’s capital.

In this election year, Washington, DC mayor Muriel Bowser and members of the DC Council have held press conferences and paid lip service to appear dedicated, but the most significant action thus far has been to paint a city street and install a street sign.  At the same time, recent DC budget proposals recommend MILLIONS OF DOLLARS in INCREASES for the police department. Meanwhile, homicides and robberies in DC are increasing, and DC Police have almost 4000 police officers!

Over 95% of crime alerts sent by DC MPD describe black males suspected of crimes. In 2019, the Washington Post revealed that a majority of stops made by MPD were of black males. 84% of those incarcerated in DC are black, despite being just 46% of the population.

Leading racial equity experts have called for the defunding of DC Police and other major city police forces nationwide. Mayor Bowser and DC Council may not believe this is a viable option - BUT THIS WILL SHOW THEM

We, the undersigned, hereby demand that Mayor Bowser, Councilperson Charles Allen (Committee on Judiciary), and other city leaders IMMEDIATELY prove that DEFUNDING DC Police is a viable option with 2-week trial run. During a 2-week period, all DC police officers normally patrolling by the streets shall be required to take administrative leave from their duties. This trial period will demonstrate the viability of community self-policing through direct neighbor-to-neighbor interaction and resources from within the community rather than the police force.

This proposal would be at no additional cost to the city or taxpayers, as the police budget already accounts for officer salaries and overtime for the full year. With officers off the streets for two weeks, normal overtime costs for criminal court, traffic ticket hearings, and heavy presence in targeted neighborhood  would actually creat a cost savings.

This demonstration period will prove the viability of proposals to DEFUND DC POLICE! Please join us in signing this important petition!

Mayor Bowser and Councilpersons Allen, Cheh, Bonds, and Gray: show us you mean what you say and #DivestFromMPD. Do more than just election year lip service!

#defundthepolice #defundmpd