SAINT PAUL, April 12, 2021 — Yesterday, an officer of the Brooklyn Center police department shot and killed Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man. Leaders of ISAIAH grieve Wright’s wholly unnecessary death and are outraged by yet another officer’s willful decision to murder a Black person—a father, a son, a neighbor, a human—in our community. 

After the murder of George Floyd, people across Minnesota, the country, and eventually the world rose up in protest against the unjust and historically routine maiming and killing of Black and Brown people at the hands of the police. Since then, law enforcement has shown us again and again the tactic they are most capable of and comfortable with using in our communities: escalation and violence. They proved this in the murder of Daunte Wright yesterday. They proved this in the murder of Dolal Idd in December 2020. They proved this in the murder of George Floyd, Philando Castille, Jamar Clark, and the countless named and unnamed people before them.

Our police continue to demonstrate a persistent failure to uphold the oath they took to protect and serve all of us. The culture of militarism and terrorism permeating throughout our police departments that targets communities of color through over-policing and under-protecting must end. They’ve lost the trust of our community and have taken little to no action to regain it.

We must reimagine safety in our cities beyond policing alone. 

ISAIAH has been organizing people in the Brooklyns, Minneapolis, and across Minnesota to create a state where our families and communities have what they need to thrive. Our leaders are working with state and local lawmakers to advance policies that make these changes possible.

The cycle of both police brutality and negligence from police departments is not inevitable. Together, we can change it. We get to have a city where we are all safe, no matter our skin color or ZIP code. We get to create the future we want for our communities by funding our lives.

 

###

ISAIAH is a statewide organization comprised of over 200 congregations, 30 mosques, 200 childcare centers, and dozens of barber shops in Minnesota. Altogether, these institutions represent over half a million Minnesotans. Our mission is to enable people to work together to organize and advocate for racial, social and economic justice. 

________

Image Credit: Kim Hyatt