Dear friend,
For the last 50 years, privately-operated police foundations have funneled massive amounts of corporate money into the pockets of local police departments across the country.
Yet, most people have probably never heard of police foundations. This is because they purposely strive to operate under the radar — giving hefty amounts of money to police departments without public oversight.
Friend, this week marks two important milestones for police foundations: 1) The New York City Police Foundation hosted its annual gala on Thursday, celebrating 50 years of operation and 2) Color Of Change and partner LittleSis1 are publicly releasing the most scathing and all-encompassing report on police foundations, and the threat they pose to both our democracy and Black lives.
Join us in the fight by signing our petition now demanding accountability from police foundations:
This moment marks a massive turning of the tide for police foundations. They will no longer be able to serve as police departments' secret corporate piggy banks. Now all eyes will be on them.
Friend, we’re doing all we can to reduce the power and influence of police foundations.For the past year, we’ve been calling on corporations like Target, Amazon, Uber, Starbucks, Waffle House, and more to stop funding organizations that funnel private money to police.2
After several months of pressure and conversations with Color Of Change, Coca-Cola has announced they would step down from the board of the Atlanta Police Foundation. This leaves the Atlanta Police Foundation with one less corporate legitimizer.
Until recently, Coca-Cola had been one of the Atlanta Police Foundation’s biggest supporters, but we stopped that. By focusing on the police foundation’s corporate sponsors, we have the power to put an end to privatized policing. We will continue to call out corporations like AT&T and ViacomCBS who bankroll police foundations.
DEMAND CORPORATE ACCOUNTABILITY
Let’s be clear : When the police have less money, Black people’s lives are less threatened, allowing us to live fuller lives.
Less money for policing means more ability for us to walk around our neighborhoods freely — without a police car following us. It means that a bright police light won’t shine into the windows of public housing 24/7. And that we can be in our homes without constantly hearing police helicopters flying above.
But back to that NYC Police Foundation gala we mentioned earlier. Like all police foundations, the New York City Police Foundation has tried hard to hide information about its funding and expenditures from the public. However, our research unearthed that the foundation's annual budget is over $10 million — and in 2020, the New York City Council required the NYPD to disclose private money the department received from the police foundation. Almost a year later, they STILL refuse to disclose this critical information.
Typically, foundations are proud to share information about the work they support. However, on top of "copaganda" and public relations spin, the NYC Police Foundation funds projects that the public would disapprove, like overseas deployments of NYPD officers in Tel Aviv, Madrid, Paris, and the United Arab Emirates. Even the FBI and CIA oppose the police foundation's "International Liaison Program."
Dear friend, police foundations rely on unchecked corporate power to threaten the safety of both Black people and our democracy. They must be stopped.
Together, we will continue to demand accountability from police foundations and their corporate enablers.
Until justice is real,
Scott, Erika, Rashad, Arisha, Malachi, Megan, Ernie, Palika, Ariel, Madison, Trevor, Erick, Ana, Kristiana, McKayla and the Color Of Change team.
References :
1. LittleSis.
2. [PETITION] Police Foundations: Policing’s Corporate-Sponsored Secret Weapon. Color Of Change, Sept. 2020.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please help keep our movement strong.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire