No to AB117
Assembly Judiciary Committee
This bill empowers the state to investigate and prosecute activists, union organizers, and leftists under the umbrella term of “domestic terrorism,” thereby further institutionalizing the violent oppression of advocates for positive change and enforcing the current unjust, unequal, and unsustainable status quo. Historically, these types of laws are almost never used to target right-wing extremists, and the bill does not single out any right-wing ideologies.
The bill includes an appropriation of $5,000,000 to provide grants for police to investigate these instances of “domestic terror activity”. This enormous appropriation of funds would be better used to target the social conditions that lead to crime, including inequality and a widespread lack of social services.
Sign this petition and we will submit it to legislators to show our united position.
Sponsored by
To:
Assembly Judiciary Committee
From:
[Your Name]
We are writing to oppose AB117.
This bill expands police power in a way that puts activists and common residents at risk. The expanded definition of "domestic terrorism" takes broken and barely-constitutional statutes and amplifies them in a way that will be weaponized against activists, union organizers, leftists, and anyone who speaks out against the current power structure. Historically, these types of laws are almost never used to target right-wing extremists, and the bill does not single out any right-wing ideologies. The only possible outcome is that it will be used to spy on and incarcerate activists who protest abuses of power, thus further institutionalizing the oppression of opposition.
The bill also allocates $5,000,000 for joint-terrorism task forces to investigate and enforce instances of "domestic terror threats". But these task forces have a history of targeting leftists and activist groups, especially those consisting of or fighting for people of color. For example, Denver police and FBI attempted to entrap Black Lives Matter activists during the summer of 2020, as did Colorado Spring police. Leftists and activists are consistently targeted by police, despite reports that almost all violent extremist acts are committed by right-wing extremists.
We call on you to let this bill die, for the safety of our community.