PETITION: Tell Nevada Lawmakers to Divest from LVMPD
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department is immensely overfunded. Their budget of over $655 million is astronomical for a city of our size. Their massive budget contributes to police being militarized against the communities that they are meant to protect. Portland’s police department serves a population only slightly larger than ours but has a budget of about 1/3 that of LVMPD. Over-policed neighborhoods are affected disproportionately by budget cuts to community programs. Our tax dollars should be used for community enrichment, rather than militarizing against citizens. For years, we have continued to increase the department’s funding for technology to keep police accountable, as well as reform programs. Still, our police department remains one of the most opaque in the nation, with per capita police killings at odds with cities like LA and Chicago. Metro continues to militarize against citizens who are denied access to due process. To compare our city’s police violence with others: Mapping Police Violence
At a time where we see massive budget cuts to public programs, including education, we cannot afford to sustain astronomical funding to the police.