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Center for Policing Equity Co-founder and CEO Dr. Phillip Atiba Goff Statement on the Results of the 2020 Presidential Election

November 07 2020

Today, Center for Policing Equity Co-founder and CEO Dr. Phillip Atiba Goff released the following statement on the results of the 2020 presidential election.

We offer our best wishes to President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. Americans turned out in record numbers — despite unprecedented challenges — to cast ballots in this election. Sen. Harris’s status as the first woman, Black woman, and South Asian woman elected on a presidential ticket is both a testament to voters’ determination and a reminder of the barriers to equity that too many continue to face.

For some, this election signals a return to normalcy after four years of hypercharged division. Let us all hope not. When it comes to public safety, “normal” does not work for communities decimated by generations of disinvestment and discrimination, particularly Black communities. Normal was not working on November 3, 2016. It is not working today.

We have a generational opportunity to build more equitable, less violent systems of public safety aligned with our values — a transformation that most Americans and law enforcement leaders want. We look forward to working with this administration, as well as newly elected officials at every level, to make that a reality.

People across the county have been calling for a wholesale reimagining of public safety since May — and in many communities, since long before that. This historic day demands that our leaders commit to nothing less. At the Center for Policing Equity, we are eager to offer the whole of our resources along the way.

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About Center for Policing Equity: As a research and action organization, Center for Policing Equity (CPE) produces analyses identifying and reducing the causes of racial disparities in law enforcement. Using evidence-based approaches to social justice, we use data to create levers for social, cultural and policy change. Center for Policing Equity also holds a 501(c)3 status.