Time and time again in America, we’ve seen law enforcement officers abuse their powers. With hundreds of citizen deaths by police per year, disproportionately targeting people of color, it’s time we see systematic change to the way we police.

George Floyd’s murder last year was a tipping point in America for a fight for true systemic change, and since then little change has occurred. Countless amounts of people of color are still discriminated against by the police, and officers are still held with a lack of accountability.

What we as citizens want is a system that fights for us, with more money allocated to community resources and social services that better respond to crime and prevent crime, and less money toward militarized policing that causes fear among communities. We also need far more extensive training for officers so we can put and end to bias, discrimination, and racism in policing, lessening the impact of systemic racism in our society.

It’s also critical we hold officers accountable for their actions. Allowing officers to walk free after severe mistakes, including murder, makes our nation an embarrassment to the world. It shows how unfair and biased our justice system is, and makes a mockery to the idea of equal justice.

Now is the time for systemic change to our policing system, so we can see less deaths, less crime, and more money for community resources that truly help serve our communities.