Racial Justice

Yesterday, we launched our big plan for the upcoming congressional recess from June 28 - July 10: Deadline for Democracy. And now we’ve got just a few weeks to plan hundreds of events, drive thousands of signups, and get everything ready to put pressure on all 100 senators for real democracy reform. A red and blue graphic. On the right is a woman wearing a medical mask and speaking into a megaphone. On the left it says "Deadline for Democracy June 28 - July 10 We must mobilize like never before to show our Senators that there is overwhelming grassroots support for voting rights!" If you missed yesterday’s email with all the details, read on below for the rundown of what we’re planning for this crucial recess. If you’re ready to support us right now, click here to donate $10 to help us support events nationwide, build toolkits, create graphics, run ads, and more to make this recess a success and accomplish all our goals. Why Deadline for Democracy? To put it simply, we’re running out of time to implement all the most important democracy reform policies we’re fighting for. To make sure that measures like voting rights protections, fair redistricting, election security, and more are in place in time for the 2022 election cycle, laws like the For the People Act need to be on the books by August. With a fleeting Democratic trifecta in power, we need to use these next few weeks to build massive public pressure for democracy reform and demand bold, transformative action for a democracy that works for everyone. Congressional recesses are a key time for our activism -- with senators in their home districts, constituents can host rallies, earn press attention, and get creative to show our senators just how crucial these reforms are. And Indivisible activists know how to do just that: we’ve been doing it for years. How are we supporting this mobilization? Indivisible organizers and volunteers nationwide are already hard at work planning virtual and in-person events in their communities to keep building the momentum we need to win (there are already 79 events on our map -- check it out and add your own on the Deadline for Democracy website!). And here at Indivisible National, we’re getting ready to provide the resources, support, and tools they’ll need to make their plans a success. Here are some of the ways we’re investing to make this recess the biggest one yet:

• Running digital ads to recruit volunteers and get the word out about our key priorities
• Buying materials and sending out swag boxes to volunteers around the country to give them everything they need to run successful events
• Printing personalized postcards for groups to send to their members of Congress in support of top democracy reform bills
• Hosting a shiny new website on behalf of dozens of partner organizations
• Running exclusive targeted peer-to-peer texting programs in priority states to build attendance
• Plus spending hundreds of hours writing policy resources, creating digital toolkits, and more to get everyone in the movement on board.

In 2018, the legislature passed a bill reducing legal financial obligations (LFO) imposed on defendants convicted of crimes. At that time, LFO legislation was one of the priorities identified at the 2017 Justice Summit. LFO’s are court costs and other financial costs that recently incarcerated people are required to pay after release, and they can deter them from paying other costs such as housing or job searches. HB 1412 would reduce these costs even more because it:

• Allows a court to refrain from imposing or waive full or partial restitution and accrued interest owed to any insurer or entity that is not an individual if the offender does not have the means to pay.
• Allows a court to not impose interest on restitution after inquiring into and considering specified factors and input of the victim.
• Revises standards for the waiver of accrued interest on restitution and non-restitution obligations.
• Revises the time periods in which judgments for restitution and non restitution legal financial obligations may be enforced.
• Establishes a revised standard of indigency for purposes of a number of provisions applicable to legal financial obligations.

While SB 5373 is not one of the environmental priorities identified at the Justice Summit, a number of people have expressed interest in the bill. The bill appears to be dead for the session, but there is some possibility of its revival in the budget negotiations. Information below provides some background and notes on a hearing on March 4, 2021. Provisions of the bill:

• It imposes a carbon pollution tax beginning January 1, 2022, equal to $25 per metric ton of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on the sale or use of all fossil fuel within the state of Washington, except for the sale or use of electricity in Washington generated using fossil fuels.
• It increases the tax rate annually by inflation, as measured by the consumer price index, plus 5 percent beginning July 1, 2023.
• It establishes a ten-year climate finance program using carbon tax revenue and a bond program to reduce GHG emissions and increase the resilience of Washington's natural resources to the impacts of climate change

At this point in the legislative session, it would be a good idea to meet with your legislators to discuss pending legislation. Most legislators are scheduling town halls online, and you can find out when at the Washington Conservation Voter website. Some will let you ask questions beforehand, which is a good opportunity to discuss our legislative priorities. Here are some of the priorities we discussed in the Justice Summit.

• Environmental priorities: Fluorinated Gases, Clean Fuels, Growth Management Act, Building Electrification.
• Racial Justice priorities: Insurance fairness act, Healthy Environment for All (HEAL) act.
• Criminal Justice priorities: Legal Financial Obligations.

The Interrupting the School or Prison Pipeline group is exploring bystander intervention training opportunities that JUUstice Washington might offer to congregations.  We are checking various options and there are a couple of training opportunities coming up in February that help this exploration. Bystander intervention training opportunities.  One is coming up on February 13^th.  Some key providers include Cortney Wooten, Seattle 350, Peace Keepers, and Poor People’s Campaign. The first, on February 13, is by a training team out of DC.  They describe it as "an interactive, participatory, beginner’s workshop designed for those that may have none to little prior studies of bystander intervention."  Payment is on a sliding fee scale.  The two times listed are two sections of the same training. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScUlPNGG7coDk5dQPYW-nbntdz08_iEr2Blj4-07g5SOp4N-Q/viewform Edmonds United Methodist Church is offering a related workshop "Stepping into Allyship" workshop will be on February 9 from 6-8 pm. As we seek to create beloved community and dismantle racism, we are intentionally making the workshop free for all participants. The workshop will be led by local equity consultant and organizer, Courtney Wooten, who has collaborated with Edmonds UMC over the last three years. We hope that this offering will bless your communities as we work to together dismantle racism and white supremacy.  Registration information is available at Stepping into Allyship (google.com)  The presenter also does bystander intervention training. The Interrupting the School or Prison Pipeline (post-Summit) group is exploring potential ways to find and boost existing programs that directly interrupt the school to prison pipeline.  Two programs that we are looking into are Speaking Justice and Community Passageways.  If you already work with either of these programs or have insights about their work, please let us know by contacting John Hilke at jhilke@juustwa.org. The Interrupting the School or Prison Pipeline (post-Summit) group is monitoring and encouraging your engagement with the following legislative proposals dealing the police reforms and racial justice improvements.  We welcome additional assistance in monitoring and insights about these bills.  Please contact John Hilke at jhilke@juustwa.org, if you would like to help.   HB 1054 (Johnson) banning choke holds etc. HB 1092 (Lovick) database of police use of force HB 1089 (Ramos) compliance with I-940 on independent investigations of police violence HB 1082 (Goodman) reform process of decertification and sanctions for police misconduct HB 1088 (Lovick) standardizing reporting of police misconduct and impeaching office testimony SHB 1044 educational opportunities in prisons HB 1078/SB 5086  restoration of voting rights when persons leave prison HB 1090  ban on private prisons HB 1282/SB 5285 reduced prison terms for participating in educational programs HB 1310  statewide de-escalation standard and limits on use of force SB 5226  end debt-based suspensions of driver licenses HB 1186 youth alternative corrections SB? 5228 Antibias curriculum development SB 5229 continuing education regarding antibias practices

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“There needs to be some defunding, but if it means officers will not be able to get into these underserved communities to develop a relationship with them, then I think we're going to find out we’re going to have another set of issues coming up in the near future,” Witherspoon said. “When you don't understand someone, you misunderstand them,” he added. Witherspoon said he supports pushing forward on legislative changes rather than the 50% in defunding many activists are calling for. “What we have to do is change the laws and get systems changed so that even if you're racist, you can be exposed. And that's really where we're going to start seeing the needle move,” Witherspoon said. Read more here.

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