5/12/21 By Beacon Staff
Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self (D-Mukilteo) is the recipient of a 2021 Champion for Child Welfare award from the Children's Campaign Fund. Ortiz-Self will be receiving the Champions for Children, Youth, and Families award during a virtual event on Saturday, May 15.
Please join us in celebrating CCF’s game-changing board members, volunteers, and all advocates for children, youth, and families!
As a volunteer-led organization for over 30 years, CCF’s impact is all thanks to our amazing board and community volunteers dedicated to electing children and youth champions in our state legislature. We are grateful for your commitment to creating a better world for young people in Washington. Thank you!
While the verdict of George Floyd's murder by police was delivered yesterday, another fatal act of police brutality occurred: 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, OH was killed by police after calling them for assistance. We repeat: a Black child called the police for help and was murdered by them on arrival. We cannot normalize this. Not even a day could pass without another life lost at the hands of police in America. Throughout the trial, police also killed 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Illinois and 20-year-old Daunte Wright in Minnesota. How long must we wait -- and at what cost -- for the systemic transformation that's needed? These children, whose lives had meaning and value, should still be alive today. Their families and communities should not be mourning such a devastating loss. Who is benefiting from this so-called public safety? How can we allow the lives of our Black children, youth, and families to continue to be torn apart by police brutality? At CCF, we recognize it's our collective responsibility to dismantle oppressive systems that disproportionately impact Black people. We are committed to this work through CCF's endorsement decisions, the policies we support, and actions we take internally and externally. We call on all of our elected leaders to reaffirm their commitment to children, youth, and families, and create anti-racist systems of public safety that serve and protect us all. As we collectively grieve another Black life lost to police brutality, we must demand real action from our lawmakers and true accountability from law enforcement. The only way forward is through collective action, accountability, and transformative change.
To donate to the Movement for Black Lives, click here.
