Congresswoman Lee Welcomes Attorney General for Dialogue on Trust Building Between Law Enforcement and Communities
Oakland, CA – Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee joined a roundtable discussion with Attorney General Holder, elected officials, law enforcement and community, faith and youth leaders on building trust between community and law enforcement. Following the discussion, she released this statement:
“I am very glad the Attorney General accepted my invitation to come to Oakland and hear first-hand our community’s concerns and ideas to enact much needed change.
This dialogue is an important step in building trust between law enforcement and our communities, especially communities of color.
We can all agree that the status quo is unacceptable.
We must work together to reform our broken criminal justice system, build trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve, and address systemic and structural racial bias throughout our society.”
BACKGROUND
In Congress, Congresswoman Barbara Lee is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus’s Ferguson Task Force which works to pass legislation to address systemic and institutional racial bias, especially in the criminal justice system.
She is a co-sponsor of the Shield Our Streets Act (H.R. 103) to increase investments in community-oriented policing and public safety infrastructure and the Grand Jury Reform Act (H.R. 429) to ensure that deadly force cases are heard by a judge and not secretive grand juries.
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Congresswoman Lee is a member of the Appropriations and Budget Committees, the Steering and Policy Committee, is a Senior Democratic Whip, former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and co-chair of the Progressive Caucus. She serves as chair of the Whip’s Task Force on Poverty and Opportunity.