Indivisible Kirkland

Message to Indivisibles:

We hope you’re taking precautions to stay healthy & well. We have some updates below, as well as some actions you can take from home. We hope to see you soon!

Please join us for a virtual community event and fundraiser to support Eastside For All, a local organization working to end systemic racism and economic inequality, and promote social justice. You can learn more about the event here.

Indivisible Kirkland’s Statement on Defunding the Police

July 2, 2020

Indivisible Kirkland stands in solidarity with Black-led organizations calling for defunding the police and investing in community wellness, particularly in programs that will positively impact Black, brown, and indigenous communities. Previous efforts at changing policing have not worked, leaving us “trapped on a treadmill of reform” (Angela Davis). Defunding the police, through efforts such as those explained in #8toAbolition, will stop the treadmill and create real change.

“There is a clear need to rebalance power between the police and the communities they are supposed to protect. We shouldn’t be handing out unlimited funding to local police departments that have proven over and over again that they are going to use that money to inflict violence on Black communities. Instead, we should call on our city leaders to cut funding for police departments, and use that money to invest in meeting Black and brown community’s needs. That means taking money out of police budgets to make sure people have well-funded schools, good living-wage jobs, affordable housing, and more” (Indivisible National).

BLM-Seattle/King County tells us that to divest from policing and invest in communities we should:

create affordable housing
bolster mental health services
end youth incarceration
fully fund education
create police-free schools.

Indivisible Kirkland pledges to support the organizations, with particular emphasis on Black-led groups, who are working to defund the police and invest in marginalized communities. Our support comes in the form of financial support, policy advocacy at the local and state levels, and amplifying the work that Black and brown leaders are doing in our community.

For more information on defunding the police, please utilize these resources:

Black Lives Matter – Seattle/King County
#8toabolition
Movement for Black Lives, “Defunding the Police: What it Takes to End Police Violence”
Indivisible National’s Defund the Police explanation and resource page
Haymarket Books’ presentation of “Abolish Policing, Not Just the Police” with Victoria Law and Mairame Kaba
We Came To Learn – Police-free Schools
Seattle Indivisible: It’s Time to Defund the Police
Lake Washington Education Association’s letter to the school board regarding racial equity, which includes a request for police-free schools.

Vision: Indivisible Kirkland envisions a just society.

Mission: Indivisible Kirkland’s mission is to promote progressive ideals in order to advance justice, equity, and inclusion through civic engagement at the local and state level.

Values:

We advocate for equity.
We pursue inclusivity.
We strive to perform acts of allyship.
We deal in truth.
We empower ourselves & other people to act.
We interact with compassion, honesty, & respect.
We practice self-care.
We are a learning organization. We evolve.
We promote democracy to build a more perfect union.
We welcome those who share these values.

2020 Priority Issues:

Climate Change
Gun Safety
Healthcare & Reproductive Rights
Civil Rights & Social Justice
Affordable Housing
Immigrant & Refugee Rights

Indivisible Kirkland