Stand With Bre

On Oct. 12, bodycam footage was released of the Breonna Taylor shooting on Mar. 13, in Louisville, Kentucky. Protests have continued to soar through the nation as no officers have been charged for Taylor’s death.

Louisville had called a state of emergency on Sept. 23 as the decision for the Breonna Taylor case was underway. Protests emerged once declared that the former Louisville police detective, Brett Hankison, was charged for potentially harming others with the gunshots that went through Taylor’s apartment.

No officer has been charged for the death of Breonna Taylor. Black Lives Matter protesters emerged throughout the city of Louisville, where armed officers appeared on the scene. The national guard appeared on the scene after two officers were shot. Protests quickly railed in other cities, including Chicago, Los Angles, and New York City. 

An overwhelming amount of pain and injustice has been left in the Black community. Black artists have taken to their social media platforms to express their disappointment in the grand jury’s decision and the frustration of merely being Black under the law in America. 

Alica Keys tweeted, “This is a PRIME example of Rotten to the CORE!!! UnJust!!!! Disrespectful and BLATANT DISREGARD!!!! Infuriated!!!!!!!”

COMMON took to his Twitter to post a video of James Baldwin, author and activist born in 1924, speaking about his experience of being ripped away from his heritage and the reality of being black in the US. “To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a state of rage almost all of the time.” 

Jessica Lussenhop of BBC News broke down “Why it’s hard to charge US police over shootings,” in her article on Breonna Taylor Sep. 24. Lussenhop stated that the main reason for holding officers accountable for shooting a person dead has to do with laws varying from state to state.

California has one of the stricter laws to hold officers accountable. A recent change in the wording of the law was made in August. In the state, an officer must believe that shooting is absolutely “necessary,” no longer just “reasonable.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the legislation, Assembly Bill 392, into law on Aug. 17, “I’m ready to sign this damn thing,” Newsom stated at a ceremony held in Sacramento along with advocates for the law change standing beside him.

The bill goes into effect on Jan. 1, and Gov. Newsom hopes this sets an example for other states. 

The author of the bill, California State Assemblymember Shirley Weber, believes AB 392 is necessary to protect people and human rights. Weber spoke alongside Gov. Newsom in Sacramento.

Weber spoke proudly at the ceremony, “Far too many days have gone by with far too many deaths because of the inactions of those who have the power to enact change.” She ends her speech by embracing the change AB 392 will have around the world.

Stand With Bre is the current campaign that is dedicated to bringing Breonna Taylor justice. The campaign welcomes people to sign the petition for:

  • The Department of Justice must take immediate action to bring charges against all LMPD officers involved in Breonna’s murder.
  • Full transparency from the grand jury and an independent overhaul of its findings, including a release of the transcripts from the proceedings as requested by Breonna’s family. 
  • Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine, who originally presided over Breonna’s case, must step down for his gross mishandling of the Louisville Police Department and the subsequent investigation of Breonna Taylor’s murder.
  • We must pass Breonna’s Law to ban no-knock warrants in cities across the country to prevent more murders like Breonna Taylor’s.
  • Support a new Commonwealth’s Attorney candidate for Louisville and for prosecutors’ offices across the country who can stand up for civilians against our criminal legal system’s brutality.

Stand with Bre will continue to fight not just for Breonna Taylor but also for the equality of all black lives under the law. They ask if anyone is able to give a donation at standwithbre.com.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.