Leading voice for victims of domestic abuse calls for reallocation of work, resourcing, & responsibility of care.

Madison – This week, as the trial of a former police officer takes place in Minneapolis for the murder of George Floyd, and as the police officer who shot Jacob Blake returns to full duty in Kenosha without discipline, we witnessed the horrific murder of 20-year-old Daunte Wright by a former police officer just ten miles from where George Floyd was killed. Days later, video footage of 13-year-old Adam Toledo being killed by a Chicago police officer was released. The child’s hands were up and empty as he complied with police orders and was shot. We denounce these violent acts against Black and Brown bodies, families, and communities, and recognize them as horrendous displays of white supremacy and systemic racism.

End Abuse is an anti-violence coalition. As all forms of violence and oppression are connected, it is our responsibility to dismantle systems that allow racism and misogyny to thrive; to hold up a mirror to how we are complicit in violence we aim to end; to name and work to end this violence at its roots.

“There is no justice without accountability and change,” said Interim Executive Director Gricel Santiago-Rivera. “As we grieve for these lives taken, we call for reallocation of work, resourcing, and responsibility of care away from police and into local community safety initiatives that center those most marginalized. We call for accountability in ourselves, in our movement, and in the systems with which we interact as we strive to create safety for all.”

As stated in the July 2020 Moment of Truth letter in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, we say again – resoundingly, unequivocally, and until lives are no longer violently ended by systemic white supremacist violence – Black Lives Matter.

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End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin: The Wisconsin Coalition Against Domestic Violence (End Abuse, www.endabusewi.org) is the leading voice for victims of domestic abuse in Wisconsin. At End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, we educate shelter and program volunteers and advocates, law enforcement, legislators, and community members to provide safety and support to survivors. We strive to shift Wisconsin from the attitudes and beliefs that cause domestic violence to values of mutual respect and equality, and we partner with communities in the effort to prevent and end domestic abuse. We encourage reporters to include the National Domestic Violence Hotline number [1−800−799−SAFE(7233)] in their stories for victims who need help. A list of local Wisconsin domestic violence victim service providers can be found at www.endabusewi.org.