Movement Against Police Violence in America: A National Community Forum 

IGNITE is organizing a National Community Forum against Police Violence in America. 

About the Event 

America is a country that holds the largest criminal justice system in the world, a billion-dollar private industry that has facilitated catastrophic disparities disproportionately targeting and profiting off of Black and Brown bodies. The Industrial Prison Complex has dismantled families, created a school-to-prison pipeline that targets Black and Brown children, and has destroyed communities for generations. 

On May 25, 2020, the homicide of George Floyd led to months of protests, in more than 4,446 cities worldwide, to address racism at all levels of society. Here we are in 2022 and not one bill addressing police violence in America has passed into law.

Research from the Mapping Police Violence has found that between 1993 and 2000:

• “Police killed Black people at higher rates than white people in 47 of the 50 largest US cities.” All people killed in Miami were Black and brown people. In Chicago, the killing of Black individuals was 22 times higher than white individuals.
• “Police violence is changing over time.” Researchers found that police killings have increased in suburban and rural areas but decreased in urban centers.
• “Most killings by police begin with traffic stops, mental health checks, domestic disturbances, or reported low-level offenses.” Traffic stops led to a killing 120 times in 2020.
• “Levels of violent crime in US cities do not determine rates of police violence.” In a review of data, there is no correlation between cities with high crime rates and police killings.
• “98.3% of killings by police from 2013-2020 have not resulted in officers being charged with a crime.” Derek Chauvin’s conviction was lauded by activists because it was so rare, even for a videotaped crime. 

What we hope to achieve  

• Educate our community on the history of policing and the systems of oppression that exists today 
• Bridge the gap of understanding on the different strategies that exist in addressing oppressive systems 
• Create a national agenda with organizers across the country with a plan to collectively mobilize against police violence in America

Date & Time 

June 28th, 2022 

10:10 am - 12 pm ET