mahrer
commented
4 years ago Thank you for submitting your city to defund12.org! Your request is now in the queue for review and publishing. We’ll reply here if we have any questions.
Open ajh-boise opened 4 years ago
mahrer
commented
4 years ago Thank you for submitting your city to defund12.org! Your request is now in the queue for review and publishing. We’ll reply here if we have any questions.
aurendisson
commented
4 years ago Editing notes: This is great! I love how much you said. I had trouble confirming the budget, so I'm having the team help me with that. Thank you for contributing! https://meridiancity.org/finance/budgetreports
To: rsimison@meridiancity.org, lstrader@meridiancity.org, jborton@meridiancity.org, bhoaglun@meridiancity.org, tbernt@meridiancity.org, jperreault@meridiancity.org, lcavener@meridiancity.org
To Mayor Robert Simison and the Meridian City Council:
My name is [NAME], and I am a resident of Meridian. Following yet another string of highly-publicized murders of Black Americans by law enforcement, our nation has been gripped by protests calling for a rapid and meaningful reconsideration of the role of policing in communities as a significant step in dismantling systems that do not serve and, in fact, actively harm, Americans of color. This moment is an opportunity to rethink public safety in Meridian and reinvest in services that more effectively benefit our residents now and in the long term. We have the opportunity to creatively put into place changes that can transform our community for the better and show that Meridian really is one of the most "liveable cities in America" for all residents, present and future.
Although Meridian is not at the forefront of these protests, it is not exempt from the racism and violence of the police system. I am asking that you consider reallocating significant funds from the MPD budget to fund systems and programs that serve our community more effectively. We need more affordable housing, safety nets for those at risk of eviction, food support, mental health crisis responders that are trained appropriately to de-escalate and provide access to holistic services, and social workers who can serve victims of domestic violence and abuse. Our community needs healing, not punishment due to the lack of resources and supports being offered.
According to the City of Meridian's budget, nearly 46%, or $20,350,201, is allocated to the Meridian Police Department for 2021—the single largest budget category in the city budget. Again, it's been shown that social programs and education are far more effective than policing at promoting safe communities. What could these resources fund instead?
The city of Meridian must reconsider how it prioritizes its budget. Meridian does a disservice to all Black, Brown, and Indigenous community members by continuing to fund policing rather than actual community support systems that will lessen our dependency on police intervention. Reallocating funds will make all residents safer.
I demand that the mayor's office and city council begin meaningfully defunding the Meridian Police Department and reallocate those funds to programs that have proven to more effectively promote a safe and equitable community: community-based mental health services, substance abuse treatment services, affordable housing programs, and more. I demand a budget that reflects the actual needs of Meridian residents.
The added economic impact of COVID-19 requires a complete reimagining of how we allocate local resources, and the pandemic makes abundantly clear that we must prioritize investments in our community's health and well-being. The city of Meridian can address deficits by divesting from the violence of policing and incarceration, which have no role in public health nor safety; prisons and jails are vectors for the spread of COVID-19. Further, existing racial and economic disparities will only worsen in the wake of this ongoing health and economic crisis. We know that this virus is disproportionately affecting Black and Brown communities and that this disparity is caused by racist systems that affect how and when people receive care.
History has shown that police reform is not enough. We must take a hard look at the ways that the current system in place fails to serve—and in fact, actively harms—our community and come together to reimagine the role of police in our city. Imagine if Meridian could be on the front lines of a movement of change in our country, one that could be truly transformative. What could our city look like in 5, 10, and 20 years?
Thank you for your time,
[FULL NAME] [ADDRESS] [EMAIL] [PHONE]
rsimison@meridiancity.org, lstrader@meridiancity.org, jborton@meridiancity.org, bhoaglun@meridiancity.org, tbernt@meridiancity.org, jperreault@meridiancity.org, lcavener@meridiancity.org
To Mayor Robert Simison and the Meridian City Council:
My name is [NAME, and I am a resident of Meridian. Following yet another string of highly-publicized murders of Black Americans by law enforcement, our nation has been gripped by protests calling for a rapid and meaningful reconsideration of the role of policing in communities as a significant step in dismantling systems that do not serve, and in fact actively harm, Black Americans and Americans of color. This moment is an opportunity to rethink public safety in Meridian and reinvest in services that more effectively benefit our residents now and in the long-term. We have the opportunity to creatively put into place changes that can transform our community for the better and show that Meridian really is one of the most 'liveable cities in America' - for all residents, present and future.
Although Meridian is not at the forefront of these protests, it is not exempt from the racism and violence of the police system. I am asking that you consider reallocating significant funds from the MPD budget to fund systems and programs that serve our community more effectively. We need more affordable housing, safety nets for those at risk of eviction, food-access supports for those who need them, behavioral health crisis responders that are trained appropriately to de-escalate and provide access to holistic services, and social workers that can serve those that have experienced domestic violence and abuse. Our community needs healing – not punishment because of the lack of resources and supports being offered.
According to the City of Meridian's budget, nearly 46%, or $20,350,201, is allocated to the Meridian Police Department. The single LARGEST budget category in the city budget. Again, it's been shown that social programs and education are far more effective than policing at promoting safe communities. What could these resources fund instead?
The city of Meridian MUST reconsider how it prioritizes its budget. Meridian does a disservice to all Black and brown community members by continuing to fund policing rather than actual community support systems that will lessen our dependency on police intervention. Reallocating funds will make all residents safer.
I demand that the Mayor's office and City Council begin meaningfully defunding the Meridian Police Department and reallocate those funds to programs that have proven to more effectively promote a safe and equitable community: community-based mental health services, substance abuse treatment services, affordable housing programs, and more. I demand a budget that reflects the actual needs of Meridian residents.
The added economic impact of COVID-19 requires a complete re-imagining of how we allocate local resources, and makes abundantly clear that we must prioritize investments in our community's health and well-being. The city of Meridian can address deficits by divesting from the violence of policing and incarceration. The systems of policing and incarceration have no role in public health or safety; prisons and jails are vectors for the spread of COVID-19 and have always been antithetical to public health. Existing racial and economic disparities will only worsen in the wake of this ongoing health and economic crisis. We know that this virus is disproportionately affecting Black and brown communities and that this disparity is caused by racist systems that affect how and when people receive care.
History has shown that police "reform” is not enough. We must take a hard look at the ways that the current system in place fails to serve – and in fact, actively harms – our community, and come together to re-imagine the role of police in our city. Imagine if Meridian could be on the front lines of a movement of change in our country, one that could be truly transformative? What could our city look like in 5, 10, and 20 years?
Thank you for your time,
[FULL NAME] [ADDRESS] [EMAIL] [PHONE]