To: Amarjeet Sohi Jyoti Gondek Justin Trudeau David Lametti
Defund the Albertan Police
DEFUND THE ALBERTAN POLICE:
Both the Calgary and Edmonton Police service are currently being allocated more than a HALF BILLION DOLLAR BUDGET each.
With this petition I am DEMANDING that the Mayors of both cities, as well as City Councillors NEVER VOTE TO INCREASE THE POLICE BUDGET AGAIN.
I am also demanding the implementation of budget cuts to the Police Services to allow for the redistribution of these funds into underfunded and marginalized communities, especially immigrants and Indigenous peoples. We are in the midst of a public health crisis, an economic crisis, an education crisis. WE MUST DEFUND THE POLICE AND REINVEST IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
We demand a budget cut of no less than 40% of their current budget.
We have lost trust in law enforcement as a result of cyclical violence, over-policing in marginalized communities, them being infiltrated by White Supremacists and a lack of effectiveness when it comes to keeping BIPOC communities safe.
We want unarmed educated healthcare professionals handling our mental health crises. We want well-paid teachers and smaller class sizes. We want youth outreach in the most vulnerable communities. We want change.
WE WANT TO DEFUND THE POLICE. They are redundant and a burden on the Canadian tax payers.
Why is this important?
The idea of defunding, or divestment, is new to some folks, but the basic premise is simple: We must cut the astronomical amount of money that our governments spend on law enforcement and give that money to more helpful services like job training, counselling, and violence-prevention programs. Each year, state and local governments spend billion dollars on law enforcement—and that’s excluding billions more in federal grants and resources.
Budgets are not created in a vacuum. They can be changed through targeted advocacy and organizing. We can demand that our local officials (including city council members and mayors) stop allocating funds for the police to acquire more militarized equipment and instead ask for that money to go toward community-run violence-prevention programs.
We can demand that our Liberal federal government redirect the money that funds police presence in schools to putting counsellors in schools instead.
Funnelling so many resources into law enforcement instead of education, affordable housing, and accessible health care has caused significant harm to communities. Police violence is actually a leading cause of death for BIPOC men: A recent study found that 1 in 1,000 BIPOC men can expect to be brutalized by police, and public health experts have described police violence as a serious public health issue. For a nation like ours, which considers itself a modern democracy that pushes ideals of freedom and justice for all, that number should be truly shocking.
How it will be delivered
Word of mouth, Social Media