The Hudson Breathe Act is Back.
Hudson/Catskill Housing Coalition is pleased to announce the next iteration of the Hudson BREATHE Act, a proposed local law aiming to create a new vision of public safety by focusing on the ban of no-knock warrants. HCHC is hosting a Town Hall for the members of the public to join and discuss the proposal on Wednesday, February 15, 2023 at 5:30pm at the Hudson Office on 47 N 5th Street, Hudson, NY.
New York needs to join states like Florida, Oregon, Connecticut and Virginia by banning no-knock warrants - at least 34 states have some kind of restriction or limitation on the use of these kinds of search warrants. Hudson can be the start.
In 2020, a version of the Hudson BREATHE Act was introduced by Tiffany Garriga, 2nd Ward Alderwoman, during the Common Council Legal Committee Meeting on September 23, 2020. She stated that:
“The underlying problem of police brutality is not only related to individual police officers, but is a societal problem that centers on an American overdependence on an armed police, and the lasting influence of the institution’s origins as an all-white force for the express purpose of enforcing slavery. The residents of Hudson have elected a City Council and Mayor that is diverse and progressive for this very reason, that we should lead our county, state, and country in the adoption of best practices. These practices include but are not limited to a greater investment in community programs, a ban on no knock warrants, a non-emergency phone number, the development of a Citizen Response Team, data mapping and transparency, and police members that reside within the community they police.”
This law was created by the people, for the people and in honor of the lives of those stolen by police and state-sanctioned violence such as Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Natasha McKenna, George Floyd, Aiyana Stanley-Jones, Elijah McClain, Pearlie Golden, Kayla Moore, Trayvon Martin, Freddie Gray, Atatiana Jefferson, Oscar Grant, Daniel Prude and far too many more.
This visionary bill reinvests our taxpayer dollars in a new vision of public safety—a vision that allows all communities to finally breathe free. The Hudson BREATHE Act is co-authored by members of the Hudson/Catskill Housing Coalition and Citizens of Hudson, modeled after the “End All No Knocks” National Campaign.