20 | JUNE 11 • 2020 

T

he Congressional 
Caucus on Black-Jewish 
Relations released a 
joint statement on June 2 con-
demning the killing of George 
Floyd in Minnesota, calling 
his death “nothing less than 
a modern-day lynching.
” The 
caucus also called for an end to 
systemic racism and demand-
ing justice. 
U.S. Representative Brenda 
Lawrence (D), who represents 
Michigan’
s 14th district, is one 
of the co-chairs of the caucus. 
Lawrence believes that now 
is the time for the caucus to 
spring into action and calls on 
the black and Jewish communi-
ties to continue to come togeth-
er like they have in the past. 
“We’
re going to have legisla-
tion and laws that will address 
hate crimes and civil rights for 
everyone,
” Lawrence told the 
JN. “This is an opportunity for 
us to work together. We must 
become very clear in our gov-
ernment and in our policies 
to publicly have zero tolerance 
for people who commit hate 
crimes, for people who discrim-
inate and for people who are 
racist and anti-Semitic.
” 
In the next few weeks, the 
caucus is planning a national 

town hall event to be aired on 
PBS. They are still working on 
the logistics for the town hall 
so they can include a variety of 
voices. 
The caucus, started in the fall 
of 2019, brings together bipar-
tisan leadership to raise aware-
ness of the needs of the com-
munities, as well as to initiate 
measures to combat hate and 
stereotypes. As the representa-
tive for a district that includes 

large parts of Southfield, West 
Bloomfield and Farmington 
Hills, as well as Pontiac and 
much of Detroit, Lawrence has 
long had to balance the needs 
of her black and Jewish constit-
uents. 
Lawrence said the caucus is 
putting a package of legislature 
together. One policy she wants 
to see is that when a crime like 

Floyd’
s murder takes place, the 
investigation should not be con-
ducted by its own police force. 
Instead, she said, it should be 
handed over to the FBI for 
investigation. 
Lawrence would like to see 
more changes in the training, 
education and hiring of police 
officers. Many cities, Lawrence 
said, require rookies to take 
diversity training courses, but 
once officers are sworn in, the 

courses never come back into 
play. 
“We all have our own per-
sonal biases and life experience 
that allow us to have certain 
feelings,
” Lawrence said. “But 
being a police officer, we must 
find a way to train, monitor, 
hold accountable and remove 
those police officers who are 
not fulfilling their duties.
” 

LAWRENCE STANDS
WITH PROTESTERS
While protests are happening 
throughout the country in 
response to the police killing of 
Floyd, Lawrence advocates for 
people to stand up, use their 
voices and stand in solidarity 
with the black community. She 
also asks for the Jewish com-
munity to continue to lend their 
undeniable support. 
“The civil rights we have 
gained in this country were 
because of the Jewish commu-
nity stepping up legally, step-
ping up by protesting and step-
ping up in financial support for 
groups,
” Lawrence said. “What 
we need now is the Jewish com-
munity to stand with us. The 
Jewish community to me are 
my brothers and sisters. I want 
them to be visible.
” 
Lawrence understands this 
fight is the same fight genera-
tions have been combatting for 
years, similar to how the Jewish 
community continues to battle 
anti-Semitism, white supremacy 
and hate crimes. 
“When are we going to create 
an environment that shows this 
is unacceptable?” Lawrence 
said. “Someone told me, ‘
You 

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Rep. Brenda Lawrence
asks the Jewish community 
to stand in solidarity
with the black community.

CORRIE COLF STAFF WRITER

Brenda Lawrence

“I Want Them
to be Visible”

“Someone told me yesterday, 
‘No matter how dark the night, 
morning will come.’
And I am counting on that.”

— BRENDA LAWRENCE

Jews in the D
jews and racial justice

