(Photo Courtesy of WWL-TV)
On Wednesday February 24th, House Democrats reintroduced a policing legislation in honor of George Floyd, whose life was taken under police custody last year. This horrific event shed light on the issues of racial injustice and police misconduct.
The bill is titled “the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021.” This bill according to CNN politics, “has provisions to overhaul qualified immunity for law enforcement, prohibitions on racial profiling on the part of law enforcement and a ban on no-knock warrants in federal drug cases.”
In addition to this bill, chokeholds at the federal level would be considered a civil rights violation. The House could vote for a proposal as early as this week.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler explains the legislation that will be put in place will create transparency between law enforcement. This will later help create stronger bonds between both communities and law enforcement. “While the issue of policing can't be solved by Congress alone, the federal government has a responsibility to address this issue. I look forward to working with my colleagues, across the aisle and in both chambers, to ensure this bill becomes law," Nadler said.
(Photo Courtesy of massive.news )
Representative Karen Bass of California who originally tried to get the bill passed in the first place thinks the police officer who is responsible for George Floyd’s death should be held accountable. She states, “Never again should an unarmed individual be murdered or brutalized by someone who is supposed to serve and protect them. Never again should a family have to turn on the TV and watch the murder of their loved one over and over again," she said. "Never again should the world be subject to witnessing what we saw happen to George Floyd in the streets in Minnesota.”
George Floyd’s murder is in the hands of the Minneapolis police officer. The many years of advocating to end police brutality has become more noticeable since George Floyd’s death.
"the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020" was introduced and passed by the House the first time but never got passed by the Senate.