Please sign our sister petition to remove police from our schools here!

As Duluth residents watch the senseless murder of another Black man by police, and as peaceful protesters across our nation continue to be brutalized by police departments, we must work in our community to help change the culture of violence police have created across our nation. The death of George Floyd is not an isolated incident. Neither is the death of Breonna Taylor, of Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, or any of the thousands of Black people who have lost their lives at the hands of police in our country. It has become painfully clear that what is needed now is not more training for police, not community policing measures, but real structural change in how we protect our communities. Based on the work of Minneapolis organizations including Reclaim the Block and Black Visions Collective, we demand that all Duluth city councilors pledge to commit to the following
actions:

1. To support a racial bias audit of the Duluth Police Department. This audit would include a look at stops, arrests, complaints, misconduct, and more. Reviewer(s)/Researchers will be selected by community members. The selection committee should be comprised of at least 6 Black and/or Indigenous people from the community and one member from each of the following entities: The Duluth NAACP, Clayton Jackson McGhie Memorial Inc., The Indigenous Commission, The African Heritage Commission, The Citizens Review Board, the Human Rights Commission. Funding for the audit would be pulled from the DPD budget. As a sign of the City of Duluth's commitment to addressing the legitimate concerns of the community members, resources to complete this audit will be included in the Duluth Police Department's annual budget.
   Furthermore, recommendations from this audit would be addressed with priority in subsequent DPD budget years.
2. Freeze/Halt any future increases to the Duluth Police Department’s Budget.
3. To protect and expand current investment in community-led health and safety strategies that are independent of police department oversight, funding, or partnership. This includes establishing an Office of Violence Prevention for the City of Duluth.
4. To do everything in the council’s power to compel DPD and all law enforcement agencies to immediately cease enacting violence on community members.