The Congregation of St. Joseph joins the U.S. Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph in calling for action against racism. The Federation has released an action alert, which we support. Following are excerpts from the action alert:
The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet have put together a series of action items that individuals and communities can take part in to act against racism and police brutality.
Now it is time for us to act. There are two bills currently being considered in Congress: the Justice in Policing Act and the Justice Act. There is merit to portions of each bill, and we hope that Congress will be able to collaborate to bring equal justice to all. A group of us have been studying the bills in-depth and are recommending that as a congregation and our companions we take legislative action. Click here to download our talking points about the bills.
We invite you to take any of several actions:
1. Call your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative
Call their local office. Find the number for your U.S. Senator here. For your U.S. Representative, click here. Ask to speak to the person handling Justice Issues.
Share a version of this message:
I am asking you to support the Justice in Policing Act introduced into the House of Representatives (HR 7120) and as Senate bill (SR 3912). Black lives in the United States have been under attack for too long. This is wrong; every human life is sacred and valuable and racism is a sin. Justice cannot wait. Please act quickly to pass this needed legislation.
We need to support a police culture in which officers act as guardians of public safety, seek to de-escalate violent and potentially violent situations, and use force as a last resort only and not until other means of de-escalation have been exhausted.
I support making these crucial reforms to combat racial bias and excessive force by officers of the law:
- Banning the use of chokeholds and other tactics that have killed people, particularly Black men.
- Eliminating federal programs that provide military equipment to law enforcement.
- Prohibiting the use of no-knock warrants.
- Ending the qualified immunity doctrine that prevents police from being held legally accountable when they break the law.
- Making lynching a federal crime.
- Helping prevent police misconduct in the first place by increasing data on police-community encounters and law enforcement activities, racial profiling, use of force, deaths during police encounters, leading to transparency, and ultimately to important modifications to training and practices.
Please support this legislation and help us create a more just society where Black lives truly do matter.
2. Email your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative
Use Network Lobby’s email system to send your legislators a pre-written email. Click here to use their system now.
Or find the email for your U.S. Senator here and your U.S. Representative here and write your own emails inspired by our talking points.
3. Write a letter to the editor
Personalize this template letter to the editor or write one of your own using our talking points. We hope many of you will send a version to your local paper. Often it takes getting 10-12 letters on a topic to get one of them published, so we hope many of us can participate.
Thank you for joining us in advocacy on this important issue!
