Last week, Decriminalize Seattle and King County Equity Now presented a plan to reinvest 50% of SPD’s remaining 2020 budget into pro-community, pro-safety measures. Specifically, we proposed reinvestments in four categories (described in more detail below.)
- Replace current 911 operations with a civilian-controlled system
- Scale-up community-led solutions
- Fund a community-created roadmap to life without policing
- Invest in housing for all
HOW TO SUPPORT THIS PROPOSAL
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Call/email/tag city council members asking them to support the 4-point proposal for defunding SPD by 50% and reinvesting in community. If you already did this, DO IT AGAIN! Make sure to contact your own council member, as well as Gonzalez and Mosqueda, the two members-at-large.
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Repost our call to action on your social media.
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Organize others to bring the pressure! Share our call to action with any listservs you manage, and with friends, family and community members.
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Write an organizational letter of support addressed to all city council members in support of the proposal.
More details on the 4-point proposal as well as a script and contact info for council members are below. Please find an extended version here. Thank you for being part of making these historic and long-overdue changes.
Decriminalize Seattle and King County Equity Now Team
After cutting SPD’s remaining annual budget by 50%, we propose funding be allocated to the following:
1- Defund SPD to replace current 911 operations with a civilian-controlled system.
Seattle must take 911 out of SPD’s hands. Police officers should no longer be the default when you call for help. Community-based workers can provide mental health support, family and community mediation, drug-user health, and many other crisis services.
2- Defund SPD to scale up community-led solutions.
Many groups in Seattle are already doing work to keep us safe without relying on police, including both violence interruption and violence prevention. Many more would jump into this work if given the chance – and the funding. The City must invest in scaling up community-based solutions to keep us safe, so we can grow our future without SPD.
3- Defund SPD to fund a community-created roadmap to life without policing.
SPD has had over a century to produce community safety and has failed. Seattle residents most impacted by policing must be asked for input on what they think produces community safety and what they want to see more of in their neighborhoods. The City must fund a community-led research process to give community members the time and space to imagine life beyond policing.
4- Defund SPD to invest in housing for all.
Even as we build towards an SPD-free future, people need immediate assistance. The City should immediately invest in housing – rather than criminalizing – chronically houseless people. All options should be used until any unhoused person who wants a place to live has one.
SCRIPT AND CONTACT INFO:
Dear [COUNCIL MEMBER NAME],
I am writing to ask that City Council approve an immediate 50% cut to SPD’s budget, as part of the 2020 rebalancing, with accompanying reinvestments in real community safety.
[Add a sentence explaining why this is important to you]
The four areas of reinvestment should be:
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Replace current 911 operations with a civilian-controlled system
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Scale up community-led solutions
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Fund a community-created roadmap to life without policing
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Invest in housing for all
As a resident of Seattle and district [NUMBER], I ask for your full support of this historic proposal.
Thank you.
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