HomeMy WebLinkAbout6/1/2021 Item 6a, Golash
Wilbanks, Megan
From:Assata Golash <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Item 6.a Change the Budget!
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Good Morning,
My name is Assata and I am a student at Cal Poly and a community member in San Luis Obispo. I am emailing today to
request a budget that serves the people. Increased policing only causes further harm to oppressed groups in our
communities. Cisheteropatriachy, white supremacy, and capitalism are all social constructs designed to control and put
harm onto a majority of people. Most of us experience some form of oppression, and the police were created to enforce
these social constructions. One of the first forms of policing in the United States came with the construction of race,
when working servants began to organize against the working class the elite got scared and had to come up with a way
to divide them. Racial categories were designed to further degrade black people and justify enslavement. White workers
were given plots of land in exchange for their services of enforcing the racial constructions. This is my understanding of
the first form of policing. Today, we see that policing has not changed much. It is now a formal job with pay and benefits,
and ever since president Clinton it has been extremely militarized. Both of which seem to only do more harm.
I'm sure you have heard many statistics on the harm that police cause so I won't add to the list. I only ask that you do a
thought exercise. Imagine a safe neighborhood, a neighborhood with community, security, and happiness for all people.
Maybe you're imagining your neighborhood, maybe that is where you feel the best. Now, imagine a neighborhood that
you go to and don't feel safe in, you don't feel happy, and you may even be scared of. As someone with privilege, you
may feel especially afraid of a neighborhood like this. Think about who lives in each. What we all imagine as safe
neighborhoods are typically white, middle to upper-class, and heteronormative. What we all imagine as unsafe
neighborhoods are overwhelmingly Black and Latinx and overwhelmingly poor. I won't go into too much history but the
US government and white people did this, it's not an accident. Now, imagine where the police are in these
neighborhoods. Are police in your neighborhood? Maybe, a car drives down the street every once in a while. But in the
unsafe neighborhood, there are typically many more police, yet it is still unsafe. The safest communities are those with
the most resources, not the most police. What neighborhoods do you want for the city of San Luis Obispo?
I recommend that you do not pass this budget. Defund the police by $5 million instead. Shift another $5 million from
other places in the budget to invest a total of $10 million into very-low-income housing to create homes and safe
communities for all people in San Luis Obispo, not just the ones you associate with.
You may feel safe in a community with police, but I'm asking that you consider another perspective and the statistics
done on this work to create a safe world for people that may not look like you.
Thank you,
Assata
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