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Official Government
Communication
Dear Friend,
Welcome to my
email newsletter. There is a lot happening at the State Capitol and it is
my hope that this email will help you stay in touch with your government.
As your Senator, I truly believe in public service. If there is anything
my office can do to assist you, please feel free to contact us.
Here to serve,
Sen. Lena
Taylor
4th District
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Investigating
officer-involved
shootings
With growing distrust of
law enforcement in our community, we need to bring black and blue together. A
big part of that is addressing the integrity of investigating officer
involved shootings. W ith officer involved
shootings drawing attention across the country, it’s clear we need a better
way of investigating these incidents. I’ve proposed we improve our officer
involved shooting law. We need to provide more resources to improve
transparency and staffing. We also must fund the Attorney General’s office adequately,
so they have the staffing and team necessary. As the next session begins, I
will look into improving this law so these investigations can be handled
properly and openly.
MPS shows
improvement
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: a quality education
for our kids is crucial. As a product of MPS with a child in MPS, I am
thrilled to hear improved in test scores. I want to give credit where credit
is due and thank our teachers, administrators and our students. Without their
hard work, this would not be possible. Last session, Republicans passed a law
allowing them to remove schools from MPS if they weren’t improving. Now with
MPS doing just that, we’ll see if this law was actually about improving our
schools or if it was about partisan politics.
Prisoners disenfranchised
Our criminal justice system
is broken. I don’t think this will be a surprise to anyone. With racial dis parities in both policing
and corrections, and the privatization of prisons, there is a lot of reform
to be done. However, when we talk about the criminal justice system, we often
forget to discuss disenfranchisement. 6.1 million Americans are forbidden to
vote due to committing a felony. In fact, the United States is one of the
strictest nations in the world when it comes to restricting voter rights for
both the incarnated and previously incarnated. Lawmakers decisions impact
them the same as any other American citizen. In the wake of the Netflix
documentary 13th, I believe it’s crucial for us to examine why
these laws are kept in place. Those convicted of a crime still should
obtain their basic rights after release under the constitution. Voting is one
of them.
Walking for Juneteenth
Juneteenth Day, June 19,
1865, is also known as “Emancipation” or “Freedom” Day for African-Americans.
On this day, all slaves in the United S tates were officially set free. Juneteenth is
the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in
the United States. It was not until June 19, 1865, when Union General Gordon
Granger rode into Galveston, Texas and issued the emancipation order that the
last of the slaves were set free. It is a time of remembrance, reflection,
and celebration across the nation. However, despite its importance, it is still
not a national holiday. Texas resident Opal Lee is working to change that. 90
years old, Lee is walking across America to lobby for Juneteenth as a
national holiday. Her hope is to gather 100,000 signatures on her petition by
the 26th. It was an honor to walk alongside her, and I hope we as
a country can see the importance in making this day a national holiday. If
you’d like to see the footage from part of Lee’s walk, you can do so here.
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Community Events:
Coffee With the Senator
October 20th
Agape Community Center
9:30-11:30AM
Join the Senator to discuss
your concerns about policy and government.
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