Chairwoman Maloney and Ranking Member Jordan, thank you for allowing me to testify today on behalf of the National Urban League. My long form testimony has been entered into the record.

I would like to pay tribute today to the Africans and their descendants whose labor without compensation built the U.S. Capitol, made possible the Statue of Freedom that sits atop the Capitol Dome, and made possible the rise of the United States as an economic superpower. I’d also like to lift up Ms. Breonna Taylor, an essential worker, an EMT from Louisville, whose life was cut short not by COVID, but by police officers serving a no knock warrant in March. African Americans are, and have always been, among the nation’s essential workers.

Police brutality and violence has a long history — throughout which little has changed. This week was a tipping point as people across the country, including in Philadelphia...

Written by: Dr. Germaine Smith-Baugh

Our residents in Broward County are angry and hurt over the cruelty we have witnessed in the recent deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery as well as the innumerable other Black lives that have been lost to police violence.

As we acknowledge frustrations, and rage, we are feeling as a nation, as a culture, and as individuals, we remember the larger historical context that birthed this moment.

Mr. Floyd last cried, “I can’t breathe. Please, I can’t breathe,” We emphasize his last words, “I can’t breathe,” and remind our communities that WE STILL CAN. We cannot afford to be silent. We won’t be silent.

Butterflies followed by hundreds of blue, silver and white balloons, many reading "Happy Birthday", speckled the sky over Louisville, Kentucky's Metro Hall on Saturday, part in celebration of the life of Breonna Taylor, and part in protest against the police killing of the young Black woman earlier this year.

Taylor would have turned 27 years old on Friday. She was killed by police on March 13 in a raid on her home. She was asleep when they barged in.

Taylor's name, along with that of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man killed by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota, last month, has been at the forefront of mass protests against police brutality that have gripped much of the United States for nearly two weeks.

While it has been almost three months since police killed Taylor, who was a Louisville emergency room technician, her family and friends, and thousands of protesters, say justice has not been served. 

Publix announced it is donating $1 million to support civil rights.

The large donation will go to National Urban League affiliates across the Southeast. The organization, which advocates on behalf of economic and social justice for African Americans, has seven affiliates in Florida.

“The last few months have brought unprecedented challenges to our company and our country. Throughout this time, I’ve been proud of Publix associates, working in our stores, facilities and behind the scenes to do what we have historically done so well — care for each other and our communities. Today, it’s evident that our support and compassion are required on an even deeper level,” CEO Todd Jones said in a letter posted on Publix’s website.

Comcast CEO Brian Roberts on Monday said the company is committing $100 million to fight social injustice and inequality.

In a memo to employees, he said the funds — made up of $75 million in cash and $25 million in media — will be part of a multiyear program. The announcement comes as media and entertainment companies respond to surging national protests and heightened focus on racial injustice in recent weeks since the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

This week, Mastercard announced a $5 million donation to support our work in underserved communities. Learn more about our partnership.

NEW YORK (June 8, 2020) -- As millions of Americans take to the streets to peacefully demand an end to racially-motivated police brutality and systemic racism, Congressional leaders have introduced police reform legislation based largely on the recommendations of the nation’s leading civil rights organizations.

The May Jobs Report is a shocker. Contrary to most economists’ forecasts, employment grew  by 2.51 million last month, and the unemployment rate declined to 13.3%.  

“The tragic and senseless loss of Black lives to police-involved violence over the last several years --  and the callous indifference to justice in response..."