ColorOfChange.org

Campaigns

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  #JusticeforFloyd: Demand the officers who killed George Floyd are charged with murder

  It happened again. His name was George Floyd, and on May 25th he was murdered by Minneapolis police officers. George Floyd was a Black man, who was murdered in broad daylight after a grocery clerk called the police thinking he was writing a bad check. For seven minutes, George laid on the street while officers Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao held their knee on his neck as he was struggling to breathe. He lost consciousness and yet they continued to strangle him. Numerous bystanders pleaded with the police officer to let him go, while Floyd said the words “I can’t breathe,” several times, but the officer refused to remove his knee from Floyd’s neck. After the murder, officers called his death a "medical problem." And it wasn't until the video was released clearly showing them choking him, did we finally see the truth. This was a blatant and disgusting coverup to prevent accountability for their brutal act of police violence. This is incomprehensible. His life was taken in a senseless act of violence at the hands of the Minneapolis Police Department, all for being “suspected” of writing a bad check. Police continue to hunt down Black folks in cities across America and we refuse to sit silent. It was not too long ago we heard Eric Garner utter the same last words, “I can’t breathe.” And just months ago, officers stormed Breonna Taylor’s home and murdered her in a botched investigation. On May 26th, officers Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao, and two other officers who were present, were fired from the Minneapolis Police Department. This is a step in the right direction to hold the officers accountable for murdering George Floyd but more action must be taken. We are calling for further action from Mayor Jacob Frey and County Attorney Freeman. Mayor Frey must 1) block the officers from receiving their pensions and 2) ban them from ever becoming police officers again. And County Attorney Freeman must immediately charge the officers with murder.

  1,628,731 of 1,700,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• Governor Bevin: Release Gynnya McMillen's Surveillance Video

  On January 11, my sister, Gynnya McMillen, was found dead in her room in a Kentucky juvenile detention center after being in custody for only a little over 24 hours. Since Gynnya’s death, the police are stating that they “didn’t expect that foul play was involved,” but it has recently been discovered that Gynnya was improperly monitored and immobilized when staff placed her in a martial-arts hold hours before she was found dead. There are so many suspicious factors surrounding the death of my sister. Governor Matt Bevin has fired KY Juvenile Justice Commissioner Bob Hayer and a staffer at the detention center, yet has failed to provide answers to how Gynnya died. Please sign this petition and join my family in demanding for Governor Bevin to release the Lincoln Village Regional Juvenile Detention Center surveillance video and provide answers about Gynnya’s death. - Greg, Gynnya's Brother

  53,900 of 75,000 Signatures

  Created by Greg Mitchell
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  #JusticeforBre: Demand Louisville divest from LMPD, and invest in communities.

  Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was in her home in Louisville, KY on March 13th when officers from the Louisville Metro Police Department barged in without a warning nor announcement and broke through her door, fired off more than 20 bullets, and ultimately took Breonna’s life. Her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, thought someone was burglarizing their home and fired his gun to defend himself. But in turn, the officers responded with a hail of bullets and turned an average morning into a tragedy. The police were at the wrong house. There was no search warrant that gave them the right to be there in the first place. Despite the clear and egregious misconduct of the police officers, Kenneth Walker is being charged with attempted murder and the murderers who killed Breona Taylor are walking free without any consequences. Instead of being transparent about their fatal misconduct, the police and commonwealth attorney conspired to make it look like this was a routine drug raid. LMPD even continued to falsely refer to Breonna as a “suspect” in the media for weeks though she had done nothing wrong. Nothing. A recent lawsuit filed against the officers reveals that police were actually searching for another person more than 10 miles away, who had already been arrested that morning. This is an affront to Black people, our communities, and Breonna’s family. They are charging her boyfriend with a crime to cover up, distract, and deflect from the fact they murdered a young Black woman in cold blood. All too often, Black women face police harassment and violence at the hands of bloodthirsty racist cops who see no value in Black lives. Breonna, her boyfriend, and their families deserve more. She was an EMT that lived her life on the frontlines as an essential worker, and when we need people like her the most during this pandemic, cops ended her young life. Let’s honor Breonna and hold the officers responsible for this tragedy accountable. We’re calling for the three police officers, Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove, to be fired and for all charges against Kenneth Walker to be dropped immediately. These officers are threats to our communities and as long as they’re allowed to wear badges Black people are not safe.

  893,516 of 900,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• Tell President Obama to Ban the Box

  Currently, 19 states have passed laws or enacted policy to provide a fair chance at employment for formerly incarcerated job seekers. The President has said he wants to implement federal-level reform in the criminal justice system during his last days in office. Hearing from you can help move him to action.

  34,239 of 35,000 Signatures

  Created by John Legend
• Demand Justice for Sandra Bland!

  DA Mathis said there was no reason for concern, despite the fact that an allegedly routine traffic stopped turned into a violent arrest is itself a cause for concern. Sandra's family says that Sandra would never kill herself and that police seem to be covering up her death. We must demand that local officials release all video, information and photographs relating to Sandra's unjust arrest, imprisonment and death. The local police department and prosecutor's office have a long history of racism and corruption. Last year, DA Mathis threatened a local Reverend who spoke out about racist prosecutions, saying he would release his “hounds” on the Reverend. Waller County Sheriff Glenn Smith was fired from the police department in Hempstead, Texas for documented cases of racism. According to her loved ones, Sandra Bland was a loving, compassionate woman, with a bright future ahead. Today would have been the first day at her new job working student outreach at her alma mater, Prairie View A&M University. Loved ones described her as bright, spirited, and having a thirst for life. She was also a vocal advocate against police brutality and often spoke about ending racism and police violence. Our hearts and minds are with her friends and family as they move through this unimaginably hard time. But in a world where Black people are stereotyped as “violent” and police exist to enforce the boundaries of a deeply divided and racist society, who Sandy was or the life she was creating, did not matter. What mattered was that she was Black, and therefore, in the eyes of the law, didn’t deserve respect, didn’t deserve her civil rights, her freedom or her life. To be Black in America, is to be safe nowhere. Black women are 3 to 4 times more likely to be targeted by police and incarcerated than white women. The Department of Justice and Attorney General Lynch have the power and responsibility to address the systemic police violence targeting Black communities. The reality is, racism, corruption and a deep-seated culture of secrecy prevents local and state police from holding themselves accountable. Without independent oversight, police will continue to kill and prosecutors will continue to do nothing. We should not have to demand justice, every time a Black person is murdered, but we will continue to do so until the justice system respects Black lives.

  47,303 of 50,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• Terence Crutcher died for being Black. Indict Officer Betty Shelby.

  Terence Crutcher needed help. But instead, he got a bullet. On Friday night, Terence, a father of four, was on his way home from class at Tulsa Community College when his car stalled in the middle of the road. Someone called the police. And instead of helping him, officers jumped out of their vehicles with guns drawn while helicopters circled in the sky filming the entire incident. The officers in the helicopter can be heard on video saying, "That looks like a bad dude, too. Probably on something." Terence died because he was Black. There's no other reason for someone to be killed by police when they are unarmed, walking slowly away with their hands up. He posed absolutely no threat. To make matters worse, after Officer Betty Shelby killed him, Tulsa Police let Terence Crutcher bleed out on the street. He died in the hospital a few hours later. This kind of continued disregard for Black life is enraging. Officer Betty Shelby killed someone. She should not be on administrative leave, sitting at home collecting a paycheck. Terence Crutcher's family and local activists in Tulsa are calling for Officer Shelby to be arrested and criminally charged. Let's join them and make sure this officer is held accountable.

  75,873 of 100,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• Fire the police officer who shot Charles Kinsey

  Charles Kinsey, a mental health worker, was shot in the leg while helping an autistic patient who had wandered away from the medical facility where Kinsey works. At the time he was shot, Kinsey was lying on his back, hands in the air, trying to explain to the responding police officer that he and his patient were both unarmed. When Charles asked the officer why he shot him, the officer responded, "I don't know." The department just suspended Commander Emile Hollant—the officer who radioed in the misinformation that the patient was loading a gun and later lied about it—without pay. Suspending these officers is not enough—neither of these officers should be able to put on a uniform again. However, Florida police union contracts and lobbying have made it almost impossible for police officers to be held accountable. Police violence against Black men and women in our country is an epidemic—the number of Black men and women killed by police each year is staggering. At least 138 Black people have been killed by police already this year. Having police who are unable to make quick judgment calls that de-escalate police encounters is no longer acceptable. Our social media feeds and media headlines are filled with horrific stories of police responding with aggression, violence, and domination, instead of engaging in conversation or using de-escalation strategies when interacting with Black men and women. Police officers who jump to violence must be held accountable and removed from the police force. Failing to do so continues the dangerous tradition of allowing police to act without consequence for the pain and suffering they inflict on Black men and women.

  31,909 of 35,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• Tell Gov. Rick Scott: Stop blocking State Attorney Aramis Ayala!

  Florida Gov. Rick Scott just wrongfully removed the first Black woman state attorney in Florida's history from a key case after she heroically pledged not to use the death penalty. Aramis Ayala ran on a daring platform committing to real change for our communities. Her bold move is a direct response to the voters who put her in office, and shows the kind of leadership we need to see from prosecutors across the country. And Gov. Scott is sending a scary and unfair message: the voters’ choice in who they elect to serve real justice does not matter.

  20,997 of 25,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• No justice. No pay. No severance for Philando Castile's Killer

  Nothing can describe the rage Black people are feeling right now. The officer who killed Philando Castile, Jeronimo Yanez, was found not guilty by a mostly-white jury after 5 days of deliberation. And the pain is unbearable. Despite having no faith the police would be held accountable in this case, the anger and frustration isn't diminished. Because once again we sit and watch a mother scream in pain because the person who murdered their loved one got away with it. Even more enraging is that Yanez could actually PROFIT from the pain and suffering he's caused. Right as the verdict came down, the City of St. Anthony fired Yanez from the department--and announced they will begin negotiating a "separation agreement" to help Yanez "transition into a new career." So let's get this straight: Yanez has been on a paid vacation for almost a year and now the department is offering him to walk away with a wad of cash? Hell no. Ain't no way we can allow him to profit from the murder of Philando Castile by any means. Sign the petition demanding the City of St. Anthony cease all severance negotiations with Yanez immediately.

  43,436 of 45,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson
• End "Stand Your Ground Laws"

  Florida's "stand your ground" law set the stage for the miscarriage of justice we just witnessed in the George Zimmerman case, undermining justice in the wake of Trayvon Martin's death. Unfortunately, unless we eradicate "stand your ground" and other "shoot first" laws, which exist in more than 30 states, we will have more Trayvon's and more senseless killings. Please join us in calling on our elected officials to take leadership in dismantling these laws.

  48,341 of 50,000 Signatures

  Created by Rashad Robinson