OCTOBER 2021
What's Going On?
Thank you for joining us at our membership meetings on October 3rd and 17th. We had a few ideas about where we want to put our energy -- read the minutes here.

Don't forget to check out the MVBLM.org website. There's lots of new content since we launched last month including Our Promise which serves as our statement of purpose. Please invite your friends and families to join us by forwarding this email or inviting them to visit the site.
Emily Galvin- Almanza

"She is a former public defender who earned the Deborah Rhode Prize for her work in public interest law, while at Stanford Law School, and was praised as one of the top lawyers under 40 by the American Bar Association. In the last year, Emily has spoken and written as an expert in criminal legal reform for outlets across the country. She's the co-founder and executive director of Partners for Justice. Partners for Justice trains non-attorney Advocates to provide clients with case navigation and wraparound support. In addition, they help public defenders protect people from incarceration and other criminal penalties. She is a true badass, and she makes me believe change regarding the criminal justice system can happen."
-- Katherine Kendall


Partners for Justice is also featured on the MV BLM website on our Angst to Action page.
Voting Rights

Last year, MV BLM members wrote and mailed over 40,000 postcards to help get out the vote. Based on Vote Forward's research this was the most impactful national campaign to effect voting participation -- ever!

It's time to harness this energy again. There are several campaigns going. Ann Marie Reardon shared this letter loaded with information. Please contact Dana Nunes at hello@mvblm.org or speak to one of us at the vigil if you'd like to help lead our next postcard writing effort.
Sunday Vigils
October 3: Dana Nunes honored Amilcar Perez-Lopez, killed on February 26, 2015 by San Francisco police officers. Watch the vigil video here.

October 10: Eric Adams honored Preston Bell. Watch the video in two parts, Part 1 and Part 2.

October 17: Vicky Divoll honored Ronald Green. Watch the video here.

If you can't be with us in person, Please use this Zoom link for all upcoming vigils. We look forward to "seeing" all of you this weekend even if you can't come in person.
The Power of Sharing A Story
We hear from many how listening to the stories of Black women and men killed or harmed by police or the criminal justice system is life changing. Be a part of the telling.

WE NEED SPEAKERS! Use this resource to find stories of Black women who were killed and amplify their stories.

Your participation in the Sunday vigil keeps it going. Please sign up to present.

Angst to Action
Gugsa Abraham “Abe” Dabela was killed on April 5, 2014. Abe was a bright, gregarious attorney with a burgeoning law practice when his life was cut short in Redding, CT, a mostly white community. He was 35.

You're invited to an upcoming (early December) letter writing party (hybrid in person and by zoom) to demand that his case is reopened and investigated by an Independent External Investigating Authority. Look for more details in next month's newsletter. In the meantime, please Sign the petition and Listen to the podcast.
Steven Barrier @justiceforstevenbarrier was turning 23 years old the day he was celebrating his Birthday on October 23, 2019. Steven suffered a mental health crisis and was needlessly killed that night when his family alleges Stamford CT PD/law enforcement murdered him. Following his death, the family and peaceful protestors suffered intimidation and arrest for exercising their civil rights. 

Join his mother, Valerie Jaddo, this Saturday (10.23.21) along with friends and family in activating for Justice on “Steven Barrier Day” Live in Lione Park, 325 Stillwater Avenue in Stamford CT at 5PM. 



LEARN: Steven’s  family and the Connecticut Legal Rights Project, Inc., brought a case before the CT Federal Courts seeking injunctive relief demanding laws be codified that would require law enforcement respond to psychiatric emergencies with a community-based, non-police mental health response team as the primary responder. The complaint also seeks Justice in accountability for Steven’s death.
Listen to Shed, a podcast series featuring interviews with islanders working to end systemic racism. Eric Adams leads each discussion using the unique lens of a therapist. Listeners are invited to "shed their old beliefs about race and make room for a new understanding of it's impact and implications."