[Peace-discuss] CUCPJ statement opposing militarization of police, the MRAP, etc. - would AWARE agree to sign this?

Wed Oct 22 01:17:09 EDT 2014

________________________________
From: Szoke, Ronald Duane
Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2014 12:04 AM
To: Karen Aram; Stuart Levy; Peace Discuss
Subject: RE: [Peace-discuss] CUCPJ statement opposing militarization of police, the MRAP, etc. - would AWARE agree to sign this?

AWARE is so laid back that it has no officers, no committees, & no membership list (that I'm aware of).  There is thus no mechanism for any "official" or consensus statement about anything.  But I will sign as one of the frequent attenders & see no harm in attaching AWARE's name to the list of endorsers.   -- Ron

________________________________
From: Peace-discuss [peace-discuss-bounces at lists.chambana.net] on behalf of Karen Aram via Peace-discuss [peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net]
Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2014 7:46 PM
To: Stuart Levy; Peace Discuss
Subject: Re: [Peace-discuss] CUCPJ statement opposing militarization of police, the MRAP, etc. - would AWARE agree to sign this?

Stuart

I will certainly sign it. Perhaps we can have a copy and collect signatures at the market on Saturday?

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Date: Tue, 21 Oct 2014 17:58:36 -0500
To: peace-discuss at anti-war.net
Subject: [Peace-discuss] CUCPJ statement opposing militarization of police, the MRAP, etc. - would AWARE agree to sign this?
From: peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net

CUCPJ has prepared a statement (attached and pasted below) in opposition to the ongoing militarization of police, urging specific actions - disassociating with the "1033" program that distributes military hardware to police, dismantling the massive MRAP tank acquired by the County, insisting on public discussion and policies-for-use before any equipment could be acquired, etc.

Would AWARE like to sign on to this statement?   As Durl Kruse writes below, they're hoping to present it to city and county officials with as many organizations in support as possible.

I think this would be a good thing for us to do.   And if possible, some of us should be there ourselves as the statement is presented in various venues.   We could try to speak to it, as well.

    Stuart

====================

Champaign Citizens for Peace and Justice, CUCPJ, is concerned about the growing militarization of local police departments; in particular the participation of area local law enforcement agencies in the Federal Government's 1033 Program.  They have recently acquired a Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected (MRAP) vehicle and dozens of military style assault rifles as reported in the news (see statement references).

CUCPJ has prepared a statement, “Halt Police Militarization in CU”, (attached below) to address this concern, and is inviting local organizations to join this effort.  We are asking your organization to agree to have their name added to the statement.  Our goal is to have over a dozen organizations sign the statement within the next several weeks.

Once we hear back from everyone, we intend to present the statement along with signatories to our local officials at the county board and city councils.

If you have any questions or would like someone from CUCPJ to discuss this issue in person with your organization, just let us know.

Thank you and hope to hear from you soon,

On Behalf of CUCPJ,

Durl Kruse
===================================================

(The text of the statement is here - see the attached Word file for a prettier version)

Halt Police Militarization in CU

We are a coalition of concerned Champaign County residents working to demilitarize our local police. Since Ferguson, the public has become aware of the trend toward police militarization, especially how it impacts the African American community. The Federal Government’s 1033 Program, providing police with excess military equipment, has been exposed in the media. Through this program M-16 assault rifles have been given to our local police, and, most alarmingly, a Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected (MRAP) vehicle has been acquired by the Champaign County Sheriff’s Office. We have several recommendations:

  *   We urge elected officials to instruct our law enforcement agencies to withdraw from the 1033 Program.
  *   We call on Sheriff Dan Walsh to decommission the MRAP.
  *   We are concerned about the lack of accountability in past acquisitions of military equipment and weapons.
  *   We ask that in the future, there be a process of public consultation before local law enforcement acquires this dangerous equipment.
  *   We ask that police develop clear policies for how these items will be used before being acquired.
  *   We insist that such weapons are not used against minors (especially in schools), peaceful protesters, and in serving routine warrants of arrest.

For more read:
“An Asset for Area Law Enforcement, Military Gear Has Its Critics, Too.”<http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2014-09-21/asset-area-law-enforcement-military-gear-has-its-critics-too.html> News-Gazette (Sept. 21, 2014).
“The Banality of Police Militarization: How Champaign-Urbana Acquired Its MRAP.”<http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/25792-the-banality-of-police-militarization-how-champaign-urbana-acquired-its-mrap> Truthout (Aug. 26, 2014).

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