Dear friends and partners,
I join so many Angelenos and Americans in feelings of heartbreak, of mourning, of frustration, of helplessness, of anger, and of pain as I reflect on the events of the past week. I stand in solidarity with the protestors’ message opposing discrimination and brutality against the Black community.
Those of us in elected office must take this moment to listen and then pursue policies that affirm, not just in our words, but also in our actions, that Black lives matter. And as with so many things, it starts with education—with removing policies that lead to Black students being suspended at three times the rate of their white peers, or rejecting proposed state budget cuts that will fall disproportionately on children of color. These, among other things, need to change as we dismantle the apparatus of institutional racism.
I've spent this week meeting with advocates, and will continue to meet with community organizations, teachers, parents, and students to talk about policy solutions that ensure their views and lives are valued. The District has passed a school climate bill of rights and is moving towards a model of restorative justice, and I voted to end an ineffective ‘random’ metal detection process last year. And I have heard demands for LAUSD to look at the values embedded in our budget, including on restorative justice, and to continue to scrutinize the roles, responsibilities, and training of school police, who must make our students feel both physically and psychologically safe.
We also know that moments like these are made that much tougher without schools open to help students process with their teachers and peers. To that end, you can find some resources and guidance here for having these important conversations with your kids and family.
And we continue the work towards reopening, which includes advocacy calling on legislators to invest in a healthy, safe, and equitable future for our school communities. We will share more updates on that planning soon.
George Floyd’s life mattered—and as we say in Judaism, may his memory be for a blessing. I think his young daughter said it best as she proclaimed that her “daddy changed the world.” It’s up to us to build a future where those words ring true.
Onward,
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