DEFUND THE POLICE, FUND OUR COMMUNITIES!
If you’re also someone who can’t be out in the streets, there’s still a lot to do from home!
So many city budgets are being decided right now and will be implemented July 1!
Join us in phone zapping these cities by signing up @ tinyurl.com/defundpdzaps.
Excessive force and police brutality rely on excessive power that relies on excessive funding that could be going to community resources. Especially right now, we need our local officials to divest from the police and invest in communities!
Defunding the police is an incredibly important first step of many on the way to a safer world – one without prisons and without police. This document is a response to both #8toAbolition‘s first of eight action items and Mariame Kaba’s emphasis on digital organizing in Kelly Hayes’s Movement Memos podcast.
SIGN UP FOR PHONE ZAP EMAIL LIST
KEY DATES CALENDAR [coming soon]
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Why defund? Abolition readings and resources
HOW TO USE THIS DOCUMENT
DO:
- Write specific dates with linked documentation if possible (e.g. if there is a City Council meeting on a date, link to where you found that date)
- Make suggestions and comments - if deleting, write a response to your suggestion explaining why
- Email defundpd@gmail.com info about campaigns in other cities or add it yourself
- Please call, email, tweet, & dm for all cities in solidarity! As people in the streets chant “the whole world is watching,” let us remind them the watching doesn’t end when the chants do!
- Ctrl/Cmnd+F or View → Show document outline to find your city. If it’s not there and you have the resources, add contacts and script links, key dates, and any other information; this is a living collaborative document!
- A fun challenge: every time you call a loved one, ask them to join you in an action—at least one email, call, tweet, dm, etc—right then and there!
- As a strategy to call in people you love who maybe have not consciously sat with abolition and anti-Blackness just yet, feel free to copy + paste for your own mobilization documents (make them short; make them often!) to use when asking them to join in action too! It’s harder to argue that increasing police salaries is more important than community housing and youth education – especially in a pandemic!
DO NOT:
- Write “today” or “tomorrow”
- Apply formatting (highlighting, bolding, etc) randomly
- Tell us a city to add without any information on dates or campaigns happening there
Formatting
- Key dates:
- Green = in the next day or two
- Yellow = in the next week
- Orange = budget deadline already passed
- Red = 30 largest cities (by population density)
- Bold the most important information in a sentence.
PHONE ZAPPING TIPS
- Include if you are a resident. Give name and contact info (ie, phone numbers) as you feel comfortable.
- Read through the whole script—do not give them a chance to cut you off! Try to stick to your scripts so that the main points of a unified message are sent without creating reformist reforms!
- If they say they are tallying or will pass on a message, make sure they repeat the demands to you!
- If you miss a phone zap event, you can still call on your own time! Phone zap events are largely for groups to get a tally of at least how many calls are being sent and to update contact information.
Why defund? Abolition readings and resources
- #8toAbolition guide to creating a world without prisons and police
- Critical Resistance on police abolition and on prison abolition
- Recent Defund PD op-eds and articles in major news outlets
- NYTimes, The Atlantic, The Guardian, New Republic on defunding during the pandemic, New Republic on defunding as good climate policy
- Book: Are Prisons Obsolete? By Angela Davis PDF (it’s just 100 pages!); also support Black-owned bookstores & buy your own copy!
- Book: The End of Policing by Alex Vitale, Free EBook on Verso
Related resources
- How to start a Defund PD campaign toolkit from Dream Defenders
- Interrupting Criminalization: Concrete Steps Toward Divestment from Policing & Investment in Community Safety
- Defund12.org’s comprehensive list of Defund PD email campaigns
- Defund email auto-generation for a number Canadian cities: Vancouver, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal
- TIME SENSITIVE: California Judicial Council, Extend the $0 Bail Order!
- A comprehensive list of digital strategies shared and co-created by Ejeris Dixon (@ejeris)
- Mutual aid and bail funds
- NYC & MN bail funds are full and asking for funds to be distributed to local groups
- A list of Resistance Funds to invest in (updated 5/28)
- Funds list compiled by Paper Mag with discussion of what the funds do
- Minneapolis groups to donate to
- Survived and Punished NY Mutual Aid Summer Commissary Fund
ASHEVILLE, NC
Key dates
- City Council Budget Meeting Tuesday, June 9th
- The Asheville City Council is scheduled to vote on the 2021 Budget on Tuesday, June 23rd
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
ATLANTA, GA
Key dates
- Voted no cut on 6/22 but $73 million not allocated until Dec 1st when police prove effect of reforms
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
*AUSTIN, TX
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- Autogenerate email to Mayor & City Council condemning excessive force with Defund12
- Autogenerate Defund APD email to Steve Adler and City Council with Defund12
- City of Austin Budget survey
Script
Contacts
*BALTIMORE, MD
Key dates
- Budget hearings begin Monday June 8 and close Friday June 12
- Budget signing by June 26
- Budget voted on June 15, 2020
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
Mayor Bernard Young:
410-396-4900
https://mayor.baltimorecity.gov/contact-mayor (email form they make clear is very not private)
Councilman Eric Costello: Chair of the city’s budget; "divided on whether or not to make cuts" 410-396-4816
Eric.Costello@baltimorecity.gov
Find Your Councilmember: http://www.baltimorecitycouncil.com/council-district-map.
They have voting power but apparently cannot address budget reallocation/alternatives
BERKELEY, CA
Key dates
- Budget likely decided end of June 2020
- 6/29/2020 - Rules & Agenda committee introduced a resolution to cut PD budget by 50% and transfer some responsibilities to other organizations (see the agenda item 21 on p.19)---according to the annotated agenda (item 21 redistribution of resources) it is scheduled to be considered by the full City Council on July 14.
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Autogenerate email to Mayor and City Council with Defund12
Script
Contacts
*BOSTON, MA
Key dates
- June 9-10 — City Council hearings
- June 14 - Mayor Walsh releases budget proposal, subject to changes from public comment
- June 24 - Final Budget vote
Local campaign links
- Defund BosCops Toolkit
- SURJ Week of Action
- Youth Justice and Power Union call-in to Mayor Walsh and Budget staff
- Type in your number and it calls you and automatically connects you with Mayor’s office
- The Young Abolitionists; Mass Action Against Police Brutality, Black Lives Matter Boston Chapter; Black&Pink; SURJ
Other relevant links
- Autogenerate Defund BPD email to Boston City Councilors with Defund12
- Autogenerate Defund BPD email to Boston Mayor with Defund12
- Unpacking Boston Police Budget
Script
Contacts
BOULDER, CO
Key dates
Local campaign links
- Boulder City Council next meeting: 6/9/2020
Other relevant links
Script - none yet use generic!
Contacts
CAMBRIDGE, MA
Key dates
- June 15 City Council meeting - City Manager reports back to Council “how some, or all, of the $4.1 million dollar increase in the Police Department budget between FY20 and FY21 may be redirected towards measures that promote public health and safety in other departments”
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
CHARLOTTE, NC
Key dates
- Budget adopted june 8th
Local campaign links
sOther relevant links
Script
Contacts
*CHICAGO, IL
Key dates
- 12/31: Budget Approved by Mayor
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
COLUMBUS, OH
Key dates
Local campaign links
- Demands #12toabolish12
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
*DALLAS, TX
Key dates
Local campaign links
- In Defense of Black Lives Defund DPD Petition to City Council & County Leadership
- Local orgs: Texas Organizing Project, In Defense of Black Lives Dallas coalition, BYP100 Dallas, Mothers Against Police Brutality, The House of Rebirth, The Afiya Center, Democratic Socialist of America North Texas, PCT - Palestine Action Committee of Texas, Free Them All Dallas, North Texas Dream Team, DSA North Texas Afrosocialist and Socialists of Color Caucus, Dallas Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
*DENVER, CO
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
*DC
Key dates
- 6/1, now postponed indefinitely: DC Judiciary Committee’s oversight hearing on the DC Metro PD Budget
- 6/16: Accepting public testimony (you! Submitting video testimony, emailing, calling)
- "Budget Markup" on judiciary and public safety on 6/25 , Council vote scheduled for July
Local campaign links
- Defund MPD, which is a Black-led coalition of people and organizations in DC, including: Beloved Community Incubator , Collective Action for Safe Spaces, DC Fair Food, Extinction Rebellion DC, Jewish Voice for Peace, Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America, No Justice No Pride, Sanctuary DMV, Showing Up for Racial Justice DC, The New Synagogue Project, Working Families Party
Other relevant links
- Autogenerate a Defund MPD email to all council members with Defund12
- Budget Testimony talking points guide here
- Judiciary Committee’s dropbox for uploading video testimony against current MPD Budget
- Email written testimony to judiciary@dccouncil.us. To submit voicemail testimony, leave a voicemail at Committee’s GoogleVoice number at (202) 350-1362.
Script
Judiciary Committee testimony guide summary:
Introduce yourself, include your full name and how it’s spelled
Say why this matters to you
State your demand
Additional police and funding for police will not enhance public safety in the District and will actually make us less safe, we must reprioritize where we put our money.
Expand on the demand: The problem is harm done by the MPD and community violence especially homicides (see here for details)
Expand on the demand: The solutions are reallocating MPD funds to pay for non-police resources (see here for details)
Contacts
DURHAM, NC
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- Autogenerate a Defund DPD email to Mayor and City Council with Defund12
- Email: PublicHearing.Comment@durhamnc.gov Source / More Info
Comments are limited to 500 words. Accepted until 7pm Jun 4th.
The proposed city budget gives over $70M to the police, a 5% increase to their budget. City council approved 6 new officers pre-COVID-19, and now they're asking for 7 more.
Script
Contacts
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
*HOUSTON, TX
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
HUNTSVILLE, AL
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
JACKSONVILLE, FL
Key dates
- Sheriff just asked for 6.1mil more in next budget; Mayor proposes budget officially in July though website says should've done that in May?
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
KANSAS CITY, MO
Key dates
- For this year budget votes were Feb/March?
Local campaign links
- Reale Justice Network demands
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
*LOS ANGELES, CA
Key dates
- 6/1: City council returns budget to mayor
- 7/1: New fiscal year begins; 2021 budget adopted
- More info breaking down LA Budget Timelines
Local campaign links
- Petition to pass the Peoples’ Budget (for LA residents; if you are not an LA resident you can use: 91436 or 90077)
Other relevant links
- Autogenerate Defund LAPD email to Council Members with Defund12
- TIME SENSITIVE: California Judicial Council, Extend the $0 Bail Order!
Contacts
Script
*LOUISVILLE, KY
Key dates
- June 25 budget vote
Local campaign links
- BLM Louisville, Invest Divest Louisville
Other relevant links
Contacts
Script
MADISON, WI
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
MIAMI, FL
Key dates
- Budget vote in September
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
MINNEAPOLIS, MN
Key dates
- April-June: Operating Budget Development
- June-August Mayor's Recommended Budget
Local campaign links
- Sign the petition to Defund the MPD!
Other relevant links
- Current 2020 Budget Visualization Here
- Autogenerate Defund MPD email to Mayor and Council Members with Defund12
Script
Twitter/IG Script (from DSA #FreeThemAll Weekly Phone Zap):
@MayorFrey and the City Council, honor the life of #GeorgeFloyd by holding the @MinneapolisPD accountable. Cut MPD’s budget. We need money to keep our communities healthy during the pandemic, not murder them in the streets.
Email/Call Script (from Copal MN on their IG):
Hello, my name is [Name]. [Insert line if you are a MN resident]. I'm messaging because I demand accountability for the racist murder of George Floyd. I urge you to defund the Minneapolis Police Department during the special budget session and instead invest in community programs that will help reduce the amount of violence in Minneapolis. George Floyd should be alive today and we must start providing more support towards community efforts in order to prevent this brutality and violence from happening in the future. We are concerned and we are watching who steps up in this pandemic and beyond. Thank you.
Contacts
NASHVILLE, TN
Key dates
- FY 21 budget was voted on by City Council on June 17, 2020
- Vote on FY 22 budget to occur on X (currently unknown)
Local campaign links
- Nashville People's Budget Coalition - Script Content and Info on What Has Passed in Nashville
- Contact person: Erica Perry: Activists Explain what Defunding in Nashville Could Look Like - Perry quoted
- Coalition Members - Several Local Organizations
- Invest/Divest: Building a Nashville People's Budget Comprehensive Report
- Helpful link with social media, articles, and other links created by People's Budget Coalition
Other relevant links
- People’s Budget Coalition Members - Several Local Organizations
- The Equity Alliance - Voting Rights Advocacy for African Americans in Nashville
- YWCA Nashville and Middle Tennessee - eliminating racism and empowering women in Nashville
- ACLU Tennessee
- Showing Up for Racial Justice Coalition (site doesn’t indicate they have been active but check)
- Support Black Causes and Charities in Nashville
- Statements from Mayor John Cooper and Metro Council Members on FY 21 budget approval
Script
NASSAU COUNTY, NEW YORK
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links (i.e. petitions)
Script
Contacts
Not yet compiled, find your representative here.
*NEW YORK CITY
Key dates
- June 23rd—Executive Budget is adopted by the City Council, becoming the Adopted Budget
- July 1st—New Fiscal Year Begins; 2021 Budget begins being implemented
Local campaign links
- 6/9 Defund NYPD Day of Action Toolkit
- #NYCBudgetJustice Campaign Information
- NYC Black Aid’s List of Demands
- Free Them All For Public Health @FreeThemAll2020
- Petition to defund NYPD & have them out of public schools
- Repeal the 50-a police secrecy legislation; Pass the Safer New York Act
Other relevant links
Contacts
Script
Twitter/IG Scripts:
- NYC allocates more funding to the NYPD than it does for, land preservation, workforce development, and public programs for young people COMBINED. @NYCMayor @[include councilmember] DEFUND THE NYPD
From BYP100; Decrim NY; Black Alliance for Just Immigration, NYC Black Aid’s List of Demands:
- I’m a constituent who lives in [name of neighborhood] led by [@name of your councilmember].I urge you to prioritize the safety and security of the Black & brown people living in your district @NYCBlackAid #ResourcesNotPolice #DefundtheNYPD
- @NYCMayor @BilldeBlasio @NYCSpeakerCoJo I’m a resident who lives in [name of neighborhood]. WE NEED MORE RESOURCES, NOT POLICE! @NYCBlackAid #NYCBlackAid #DefundtheNYPD
- It is immoral that our city’s leaders would prioritize the expansion of surveillance & policing over the health of its residents in the midst of COVID-19 #ResourcesNotPolice @NYCMayor @NYCSpeakerCoJo #DefundtheNYPD
- To survive this pandemic and its aftermath, Black and brown communities need resources that don’t look like police. We are counting on you to support us [@name of your councilmember] #NYCBlackAid #DefundtheNYPD
Additional tweets:
- From Councilmember Antonio Reynoso @CMReynoso34:
In the FY21 budget, the NYPD faces close to zero budgetary cuts while youth & environmental programs are completely eliminated. There is no equity in a budget that perpetuates overpolicing while shortchanging our most vulnerable New Yorkers. @NYCMayor @[include councilmember] - From Chair of NYC Council’s Committee on Public Safety, Donovan Richards @DRichards13:
Once again, there’s no need for @NYCMayor to spend $25 million on a new police class. Let’s redistribute those $ into SYEP and the Crisis Management System. Crime is down. Another class would only add to social-distancing enforcement brutality in black communities.
Email/Call/Fax Script:
- @NYCBlackAid: Hi my name is [NAME] and I am a resident of [BOROUGH]. I am asking to call an emergency council meeting and deny the Mayor’s proposed budget. I would like to redirect money away from the NYPD into these social service programs [List]. It is crucial that this meeting is called because police are currently being paid overtime for protests.
- Based on @JFREJNYC: Hello, my name is [Name]. [Insert line if you are a NYC/district resident]. I demand accountability for the NYPD’S abuse of protesters. I urge you to defund the NYPD in the 2021 city budget. The NYPD‘s $6 billion budget is more than expenses on homeless services, youth development, and workforce development combined. The mayor is planning to take away resources from our most vulnerable, hardest hit communities to fund the brutality we have been seeing in the streets. Youth programs, including ones made to divert from incarceration, are being cut by 32% while the NYPD is only being cut 0.38%. Especially in this pandemic, can we count on you to vote for significant cuts to the NYPD in order to fund our cities many other critical priorities in this crisis?
- Letter advocating for NYPD divestment to Mayor & Speaker Johnson from Communities United for Police Reform (CPR)
- Letter advocating for NYPD cuts to Mayor from Speaker Corey Johnson and Council Members Daniel Dromm, Chair of Committee on Finance, and Vanessa Gibson, Chair of Subcommittee on Capital Budget
- Prefilled email to Scott Stringer, NYC Comptroller, and members of NY City Council. For more info check out this simple toolkit.
OAKLAND , CA
Key dates
- No scheduled budgetary meetings at this time.
- Next round of budget development (to determine city budget for 2021–2023) will occur February–May 2021.
- Next round of budget deliberation will occur May–June 2021.
- The council and mayor must approve a balanced budget for 2021–2023 by June 30, 2021.
Local campaign links
- Oakland Should Lead the Way: Proposal for Effective Police Oversight from Anti-Police Terror Project
Other relevant links
- TIME SENSITIVE: California Judicial Council, Extend the $0 Bail Order!
- Autogenerate a Defund OPD email to Mayor, Council Members, and Elected Officials with Defund12
- City of Oakland Budget Guide & Background
- FY 2019–21 ADOPTED BUDGET
- Public input into the budget process: https://oaklandca.gov/budget, BudgetSuggestions@oaklandca.gov
- Oakland City Council Meeting Schedule
- Look Up Your District and Council Member
- City of Oakland Budget Data Explorer
- Visualized Oakland Budget via OpenBudgetOakland.org
- Oakland City Council Website
Script
Contacts
PHONE
(510) 238-2130
#oakbudget | twitter.com/Oakland | |
facebook.com/Oakland | ||
instagram.com/Oakland | ||
ORLANDO, FL
Key dates
- The budget hearing for Orlando will be September 8, 2020 for the fiscal year 2020-2021. Orlando approved a 1.4 Billion budget on 2019, and it used some of it to hire 80 new police officers
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
EL PASO
Key dates
- Budget vote in Aug before the 31st exact date unclear, DA elections soon
Local campaign links
- Remove El Paso Police Chief Petition
- Detained Migrant Solidarity Committee, Fronterizx Fianza Fund, Sunrise El Paso (running workshops about abolition), Trans-Youth Coalition, We Are Human EP, Casa Carmelita (Cosecha El Paso)
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
PHILADELPHIA
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
PHOENIX
Key dates
Local campaign links
- BLM Phoenix Metro
- Poder in Action
- Mass Liberation AZ
- Black Phoenix Organizing Committee
- Phoenix Local Organizing Committee
- Black People's Justice Fund Phoenix
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
PORTLAND
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
SACRAMENTO
Key dates
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- TIME SENSITIVE: California Judicial Council, Extend the $0 Bail Order!
- Autogenerate Defund PD email to Mayor, City Manager, and City Council with Defund12
Script
Contacts
SAN DIEGO
Key dates
- City Council voted Monday, June 8 to increase PD budget
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- TIME SENSITIVE: California Judicial Council, Extend the $0 Bail Order!
- Autogenerate Defund PD email to Mayor and City Council with Defund12
- Mayor’s Budget message -explaining why he is against defunding
- Proposed budget, full document
Script
Contacts
SAN FRANCISCO
Key dates
- Aug 1, 2020: Mayor Breed’s budget proposal for defunding police
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- TIME SENSITIVE: California Judicial Council, Extend the $0 Bail Order!
- June 4 press release about plan to Defund and give to community
- Current police accountability policy
- Defund12 link to email
Script
Contacts
SAN JOSE
Key dates
- Final adoption of budget occured on June 23, 2020
- As of June 17, 2020 the SJ budget has been approved. it does not reduce funding to the police force ($449M / $4.1B total) . sets aside $2M for new "equity and policing reforms". establishes "Office of Racial Equity" ($1M) not sure where the other $1M was allocated to
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
SEATTLE
Key dates
- Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda announced commitment to conduct inquest of SPD by July 17th
- June 9 - Mayor Jenny Durkan to present rebalancing budget
- Schedule of budget meetings June 10 - July 20
- Public hearing & votes July 1st--20th
Local campaign links
- To sign petition (individual)
- To sign petition (organization)
- Petition asking Mayor Durkan to resign (individual)
looks like it might be intended for residents? - BLM Seattle King-County
- COVID-19 Mutual Aid Seattle
Other relevant links
Script
Contacts
SOMERVILLE, MA
Key dates
- Finance Committee meetings June 16 and June 18 to discuss FY21 budget
- Mayor going to propose the budget Friday, June 19 @ 6pm
- City Council will be meeting throughout the rest of the month, with opportunities for public testimony and final budget proposed by Mayor Curtatone will be voted on at end of the month (date to come)
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- Ward 5 city councilor Mark Niedergang is in favor of divesting from police but is ultimately in favor of reform and community policing
- Meetings, Schedules and Streaming Links
Scripts
Contacts
ST. LOUIS
Key dates
- No new budget hearings on the schedule as of now
Local campaign links
Other relevant links
- Link to 2021 City Budget Information
Script
Contacts
ActionSTL “List of Demands.” We need people focusing on these points
Potential Script:
[Councilmember Name],
The City of St. Louis is in pain, and you must take action to support its residents. St. Louis has an ongoing history of violence against its Black citizens. That needs to end now. The police force must be defunded. The Workhouse must be closed immediately. We do not need militarized police while people struggle to find housing, food, or healthcare.
St. Louis should be supporting its people — not murdering them. (include image of “list of demands”)