As Portland City Council finalizes the 2020-21 citywide budget, the City’s Budget Committee has proposed a budget that dedicates over one-third of the City’s general fund budget on policing. How we spend our public funds expresses our values as a city, and we do not believe that our city should continue to over-invest scarce resources in the Portland Police Bureau.
Especially at this time of unprecedented crisis, we must commit our public resources to the health and well-being of our communities: programs like rent and mortgage assistance for working-class folks, housing for our homeless, and food assistance programs for people having trouble making ends meet.
Defund Reinvest Protect (DRIP)
Thousands of Portlanders have responded to our mobile campaign and call to action to defund parts of the Portland Police Bureau. And after your overwhelming response and growing demonstrations across our city and struggle in the streets, one thing is clear: we are winning the fight to defund the police!
Respond to the call of grassroots Portlanders! Rethink public safety in this city and end militarized policing on our streets. We are counting on you to take action NOW! You can view our full demands here:
Sign our petition and share your voice: TAKE ACTION
Rose City Justice Demands
RCJ demandS that Portland City Council DEFUND local police, REINVEST in Black futures, and PROTECT our communities from violence.
To do that, we demand that Portland City Council DEFUND local police, REINVEST in Black futures, and PROTECT our communities from violence.
Sign our petition and share your voice: TAKE ACTION
DEFUND the PPB
Immediately and substantially reduce the budget of the Portland Police Bureau. Commit to never voting for police budget increases again.
Immediately reduce PPB’s budget by $50 Million for FY2021. Reduce the size of the police force now.
• As a City Council member, commit to never again vote for a PPB Budget increase.
Along with an overall cut, budget reductions must include:
• Defund Transit Police, which is part of the militarization of our public transit system. End any participation of PPB in Trimet fare enforcement or the escalation of fare violations with additional charges.
• Defund the Gun Violence Reduction Team, formerly known as the Gang Enforcement Team, which is still dedicated to over-policing Black Portlanders.
• Defund SERT, which brutally represses peaceful protesters with chemical and ballistic weapons, as we’ve seen so acutely on display in response to demonstrations over the murder of George Floyd.
• Divest City of Portland Cannabix Tax funds from the PPB budget and invest them into reparations for those harmed by the War on Drugs, which disproportionately targeted BIPOC communities.
Sign our petition and share your voice: TAKE ACTION
REINVEST in Black futures!
We are in the midst of a health, social, and economic crisis that is having its most devastating impacts on Black, Indigenous, and Brown communities. We must protect and expand community-led health and safety strategies. We must keep our people housed and get our people housed. We must resource the basic needs of Black and African immigrant/refugee community members, right now!
• Invest in a community-centered health and safety model that is developed in strong partnership with community partners.
• Listen to past recommendations! For decades, community partners have been offering wisdom on how to ensure our communities can thrive. Addressing the health and safety of Black, Indigenous, and Brown communities means prioritizing these solutions.
Sign our petition and share your voice: TAKE ACTION
PROTECT our communities from violence!
We elect you as leaders, including the police commissioner, to enact the public will. You must do everything in your power to compel police to stop their violence against our communities now, while we work to abolish police entirely. We cannot envision and realize alternatives to our current police state if we do not begin the conversations about what a healthy and just community-centered approach requires. We need the Portland government to begin those measures NOW:
• Pledge that Portland will never participate in the Joint Terrorism Task Force.
• Ensure that all personnel at PPB are complying with Sanctuary from ICE.
• Stop all sweeps of camps that shelter houseless people and the expansion of sit-lie regulations.
• Stop the militarized response to protest. Stop using rubber bullets, teargas and flashbang grenades at protests.
• End the City’s attempt to remove PPB from the DOJ Settlement and accept external oversight for decades of civil rights violations.
• Establish open collective bargaining with police unions during the contract renegotiation, including community groups as a party to the negotiations. Limit collective bargaining negotiations to wage and salary related matters.
• Give community oversight meaningful power in disciplinary actions and dismissal of officers. Adequately establish and fund citizen oversight and require police contact data to be collected correctly and reported to the Auditor’s office.
See Also: Divest City Of Portland Cannabis Tax Funds From PPB
