Dear Member of Congress:

It is long past time for Congress to act to change the patterns of police brutality which is far too often racially motivated. I and the 200,000 other responsible business leaders represented by the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC) urge you to support the Justice in Policing Act of 2020 which aims to hold law enforcement accountable for misconduct in court, improve transparency through data collection, and reform police training and policies. Threats to equal justice under law are threats to doing business and move us further from a just and equitable society and economy. Congress has the responsibility to stop the toxic patterns of brutality and racism that we have seen for far too long from our law enforcement officers, and continue to see even in the face of protests against this very issue. Each day that passes where Congress does not take a bold stance against unjust policing is a day where lives - particularly lives of people of color especially in the Black community - continue to be threatened and even taken. Public protection, in business and in policing, requires transparency, accountability, and justice.

Congress must address the fact that so many deaths at the hands of police have been completely unjustified and inhumane. By banning no-knock warrants in drug cases, incentivizing bans on choke holds and carotid holds, the Justice in Policing Act speaks directly to the murders of Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, George Floyd, and far too many others.

Of course, justice in law enforcement means going beyond banning these cruel forms of punishment. The Justice in Policing Act also explicitly prohibits racial profiling, and establishes measures to stop the militarization of police forces. The Justice in Policing Act makes the necessary changes of weakening the qualified immunity defense, establishing a National Police Misconduct Registry and increasing use-of-force reporting, and requiring officers to wear and appropriately activate body cameras. These are but some of the crucial shifts that need to be made in order to ensure that systemic racism and racial bias within law enforcement begin to be dismantled and no longer lead to the deaths of our community members.

Finally, the Act directs us to the path of reconciliation for the future. As business leaders, we recognize the necessity of acknowledging our complicity in systemic racism, and commit to our responsibility to build a more inclusive and just world in the future and an economic system that works for all. It is your responsibility as our elected officials to do so as well. The Justice in Policing Act is a meaningful start.

As we continue to face the economic, social, and emotional challenges posed by the pandemic, as well as the social unrest caused by the patterns of racism and injustice that have manifested themselves most violently in the form of police brutality, it is absolutely vital that Congress acts urgently to create change.