Coalition to March on the DNC announces shift, to prioritize movement against police crimes

Milwaukee, WI – On August 20, the day that Joe Biden is expected to be in Milwaukee to accept the Democratic nomination, the Coalition to March on the Democratic National Convention is hosting a march and rally within sight and sound of the Wisconsin Center.

People in cities and towns across the country are protesting racist police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Alvin Cole right here in Milwaukee. Protests in Minneapolis ignited a fire that swept across the country, producing the largest civil rights movement in U.S. history.

For the Coalition, a shift in priority is necessary. Rather than maintaining the strategy of not giving priority to any one of the nine points of unity, the Coalition will be amplifying one of them in particular: the demand for community control of the police and an end to police terror.

Part of this shift means getting the people directly impacted by killer cops involved in the demonstration in order to give their cases the national attention they deserve. The families of Alvin Cole from Milwaukee, Isaiah Tucker from Oshkosh, and Jonathon Tubby from Green Bay agreed to join their voices with the Coalition in demanding justice for their loved ones and others.

“Alvin Cole was one of many who’ve lost their lives brutally to police violence. Families of victims and the community cannot celebrate a national convention when a national crisis is occurring in their state,” said Taleavia Cole, Alvin’s sister. “Allowing the families to share their story is standing up for injustice everywhere.”

Organizations such as the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression, whose primary area of work is fighting racist police crimes, will be at the fore of the August 20 rally and march.

“It’s clear that Trump is provoking violence against protesters and encouraging police killings of Black and other people. He is public enemy number one and we must defeat him,” said Lauryn Cross, a leader with the Milwaukee Alliance. “But we also can’t ignore that it’s Democrats who run the majority of the cities where cops get away with these murders.”

Frank Chapman, the executive director of the National Alliance, added, “Democrats have played their own role in enabling killer cops. Their answer to this crisis is to shoot people in the leg instead of the heart, but we’re not having that. Nothing short of community control of the police and justice for the victims of police crimes. Enough is enough. We can’t breathe.”

The Coalition is urging all other local and statewide organizations and their supporters to join with them in mobilizing for this important demonstration.