Rep. Johnson’s Floor Statement in Support of H.R. 7120, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Mr./Madame Speaker, I rise in support of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act because BLACK. LIVES. MATTER.

Watch here: https://youtu.be/GB_f78FW_nE

Police killed George Floyd over a counterfeit $20 dollar bill, as if his life didn't matter. Police in Atlanta, Georgia, killed Rayshard Brooks for running away — as if his life didn't matter.

Breonna Taylor, Kathryn Johnson, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott, Philando Castile, Eric Garner, and a long line of others. Each killed by police, and robbed of their constitutional right to due process.

None of these notorious killings moved Congress to act. It took regular folks of all races, creeds and colors, taking to the streets, in every part of this country, even in the face of a global pandemic, to tell the world — that we've had enough of police killing black folks. Our people need to know that we hear them.

Congress knows that on the one hand, President Trump's cronies, like Roger Stone and Michael Flynn, can lie to federal investigators — only to receive a "get out of jail free card" from the President's protector, Attorney General William Barr. On the other hand, regular Black folks like George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks, accosted for broken-tail light types of offenses, get executed by police acting as judge, jury, and executioner.

The only way that Congress can prove to the American people — that we believe that Black Lives Matter, is for all of us — Republicans and Democrats alike — to take legislative action, to stop police from brutalizing and killing black people. Not tomorrow. Not next year. NOW.

So, in the name of Michael Brown and the citizens of Ferguson — let's demilitarize local police departments. In the name of Breonna Taylor and Kathryn Johnson — let's ban no-knock warrants. In the name of George Floyd and Eric Garner — let's ban chokeholds and make it easier for police departments to fire bad cops. In the name of Tamir Rice — let's enact a National Registry of Bad Cops.

For The People of the United States demanding action, let's pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. NOW!

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