Mrs. Murray thank you, mr. President. Mr. President , it has been 17 mr. President , it has been 17 mr. President it has been 17 days since Minneapolis Police murdered george floyd, 90 days since police in louisville kentucky killedur brown a tailor who would have turned 27 just days ago and 109 days since ahmad arbery was killed by armed white residents in south georgia. These are just some of the most recent examples of the senseless repeated killings of black people in our communities including by m police in that he led to massive outpourings of anger and grief that we have seen on display across the country. The protests are not only about the unjust tragedies, they are also about sandra bland, mike round, i. T. Auntie anna jefferson, walter scott, orlando costello, i anna stanley jones, tamir rice, as well as manny ellis, and shea taylor from my home state of washington. The countless people, black people and people of color the vast majority whose names we dont know whose lives have been unfairly taken. Even more important these protests are driven by people including many young people who aree justifiably sick and tired of the systemic racism behind those killings that is deeply woven throughout the fabric of our democracy and our history and rightly believe we are not moving forward nearly fast enough. I know this is true in my home state of washington where according to data compiled by the Mapping Police violence database between 2013 and 2019 black people were more than three times more likely to be killed by the police and it is beyond clear that disproportionate impact of Police Violence in on black communities as well as other communities of color is not an accident. So mr. President i come to the floor today because our nation has to change, because the people are demanding it and i believe each of us especially those of us privileged enough to serve in the United States senate is responsible for being a part of the solution. Mr. President its been more than two weeksre since George Floyds murder and we are still seeing protests across the country in towns big and small urban rural areas. They dont seem to be stopping. More and more people are getting engaged and learning and listening signaling we have a real opportunity to make change in our country. I believe strongly this is a problem we can start to change today and we have the policies to do it. One major step we can take is by passing legislation offered this week as senators Harrison Booker and i want to thank them forra their more leadership on so many challenges but especially this week with the introduction of the justice and policing act. Their legislation would among other things reform qualified immunity and antiquated judicial doctrine that is cap so many officer should be held account of old for violating americas constitutional rights. It would ban the use of choke holds and carotid holds and make federal Funds Available only for state anded local departments committed to codifying an end to this shameful to have pics of law. To make a higher bar before using deadly force and require deadly force to be used only as a last resort. Banned the use of no knock warrants and federal drug cases and provide strong incentives to state and local governments to do the same, strengthen transparency of policing through data by creating a National Police misconduct registry to prevent misconduct from being swept under the rug and requiring the federal government to finally begin National Tracking incidences of use of force. It would limit the transfer of militarygrade equipment to state and local Law Enforcement has well staffed to restore and build on many of the policing reforms initiated during the obama administration. None of these policies should be controversialem for any of us he in the Senate Democrat or republican. We have all seen the same egregious abusesle of power from police and the committees we represent, communities who safety should be our priority. Its undeniable changes not only necessary but long overdue and theres absolutely no reason this body shouldnt be old to take up and take forward vital steps and test them immediately. Mr. President i dont think senators harris or booker or ananyone sponsoring the bill thk its a tennessee or solution to the longstanding problems the last few weeks have laid bare at this is action we can start taking now to begin ensuring justice and accountability in our lives and in our Law Enforcement and hopefully help put us on the path to heal our. While we need to pass legislation to address Police Brutality we cant stop there. The justice and policing act is the first of many steps we need to n take taking congress to hep reset our nations moral compass. Mr. President the massive uprising of peaceful protests against Police Brutality we have seen in recent days is happening while many of our states are still working overtime to address the impact of the covid19 pandemic and keep people safe as we reopen communities. Over the last couple of weeks i have been in contact with black leaders and activists back home and i have heard over and over again about the connection between the racism at the heart of the policing of black communities and the disproportionate impact of covid19 on them and their families. More importantly how traumatizing most challenges like this can be for black people who deal with these injustices day in and day out. For instance as one civil rights black leader in southwest washington told me how their community has had a hard time getting vulnerable members of the black community she is fighting for more resources and support and shes organizing car rallies to an order people to have their voices heard against police or tell the while still practicing social distancing could never leader shared with me absolutely critical it is that blacks and otherrv serve command communities have access to covid19 testing in health care during this ongoing pandemic and these were both important and isnt an either or proposition. Peopleat are rushing the streets to make their voices heard in the middle of a Global Health emergency underscores how serious this moment in our country is and highlights the injustices baked in our system at every level. This means during this unprecedented public Health Emergency we must prioritize our response including ensuring we collect the necessary Demographic Data to target our efforts towards those most inr need and using this data to aggressively address disparities in making sure critical supplies like testing kits in ppe are getting to our hardhit communities which is not happening consistently and is contributing to black and Brown Community suffering disproportionately from the health and Economic Impact of this virus. Notus to mention planning now fr equitable distribution of a safe and effective vaccine. More broadly the protests are a passionate call for meaningful change inur our system and institutions to combat the status quo of racism and anti that sustains our democracy. In order to makeli the right policy and resource decisions to help change america for the better move towards a more just and p peaceful future it is critical that we all try to stand in the shoes of those commanding change and hear what they are saying from the perspective of their Life Experiences not solely of our own because like ive heard recently in my conversations with black question tony and said its not that these are new ideas or proposals but as a nation we have been paid nearly attention to the profound grievances black people have been raising for a long time. What i hear is people crying out for this country to live up to its values saying its time for aal love us especially elected officials to listen and act by reinvesting and supporting our communities rather than allowing to be an unaccountable militarized to perfectly understandable calls for Better Health care or better schools and real safety. That means not only addressing the racism and are covid19 response but also how we address Maternal Mortality which disproportionate affects f black families and ask for more help for black communities and how would well work to solve the climate Climate Crisis which black and brown communities have suffered the worst impacts of growing pollution and how we worked to close the gender pay gap that hits black and latina women the heart is and how we assure every resources and opportunity and quality in our schools and colleges and their universities and much much more. None of this will happen overnight but it is important that we start to work now to dismantle systemic racism if we ever want to make justice and equality reality instead of distant ideals. There is also a piece of this and id be remiss if i didnt mention it. I want to talk about something thatle so many people across the country especially white people who dont live every day feeling the impact personally are grappling with right now which isf the part of this work that isnt about our system or our institutions. Its about looking inward. Far too often the fear of finding out that youve been completely misunderstood closes us off from honest selfreflection and growth. We cant let it because lets be clear change in our own hearts and our own minds and in our communities is a fundamental and essential to truly overcoming racism in our country. Instead of lettings sphere of getting it wrong lead to an action for complacency i urge you to let it motivate you to listen and to learn because we all have more to do. I am tersely committed to doing more. We all need to play a role in especially our nations leaders which is why its so frustrating that next week is set of addressing the profoundly urgent issues we are hearing aboutoull from literally all cos of this country that president is working towards confirming a personal friendde of the majoriy leader to a lifetime judicial position and very little else. I refuse to expect and we all should. I alsoon havent mentioned the president of the United States yet it before it do want to make one thing really clear. He is not the cause of all of this at injustice, he is the symptom and all of us are the only cure. Instead of rising to try to unify the country the president has shown more interest in fanning the flames of divisiveness and making dangerous unconstitutional threats to intimidate into silence and suppress these vital protests. To see this president at the helm of our country and this moment is tragic. Try as he might the president cannot simply dismiss the legitimate anger on seattletacoma spokane or across the country as a pervasive and crushing impact of racism on black people and other people of color. For generations we have seen in our newspapers and their televisions and from our cell phones that dire and unfair and too often impact of systemic racism on black lives. Now our focus must be on the painstaking work that actually addresses the deep systemic racism inn our country which continues to create these moments of understandable despair. Im going to keep listening to the people who are at the forefront of these movements including the work that has already been done to help reimagine our approach to Public Safety working to redirect taxpayer dollars towards Community Resources that invest in the health and safety and security of black people and others who have been historically overlooked. And acting not just talking to keep our momentum and efforts on this front progressing forward. Im so glad of the to connect with leaders in Washington State onon these issues and is an elected leader i know i have to continue stepping up and amplify necessary efforts because even our country is at a crossroads perhaps the most peerless one we have faced in recent memory we have an opportunity for Real Progress right now. I feel it in the demands for change coming from the streets and on social media. I feel it in the energy and the resilience and the courage of eacivil rights leaders on the ground in Washington State and i feel it in the justice act. In closing mr. President i hope every single senator in this chamber will join senators harris and booker and myself in cosponsoring this critical legislation and getting it signed and on the books as quickly as possible. I challenge each of my colleagues and all of us to commit ourselves to a fair more compassionate vision for our future. Some will say that nothing will change or can change and we are stuck to live out this historical loop of historical racism in her gratuity. I quote you dont have to pretend to be free of racism to be in antiracist. Antiracism is the commitment to fight racism whereever you find it including in yourself and it is the only way forward and quote. As a country lets commit to fight racism in ouraw laws and systems. As individuals lets commit to fight racism and ourselves and our community. This is the work before all of us. As someone committed to forming a more Perfect Union for everyone i intend to workin for justice every day. Mr. President i yield the floor