SD45 , CD3 DFL

Rep. Cedrick Frazier (HD45A) Update: July 2, 2021

Dear Neighbors,

Early Thursday morning, we adjourned the Minnesota House after finalizing our budgets and coming to an agreement on budget bills. The past year, and the few weeks over time were well worth the outcome! We were able to deliver strong budget bills to ensure that Minnesotans have accessibility and a good quality of life. Our budget invests in the people. It aims to improve and recover the conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier today, Gov. Walz signed the remaining budget bills into law.

Over the past few weeks, we have been able to pass several key bipartisan budgets in a number of areas to ensure Minnesotans can access resources, investments and recover from the impacts of this pandemic. If you’d like to get caught up on the bills we’ve passed the last two weeks, you can find nonpartisan summaries of the bills and the process around them here:

Minnesota POCI Caucus Statement on Public Safety Accountability

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — Today, Monday June 28, the People of Color and Indigenous Caucus (POCI) introduced a number of amendments to the Public Safety and Judiciary budget bill. This is in response to the absence of several necessary accountability measures in the current bill language. The POCI Caucus is also calling on Governor Walz to use his executive authority to enact several reforms. The POCI Caucus released the following statement.

“Minneapolis, Minnesota is the recent epicenter of a racial justice reckoning happening across the United States. After the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Derek Chauvin, people from all backgrounds took to the streets demanding change. Unfortunately the changes sought by so many, that would help diminish the killing of BIPOC people at the hands of the police, did not emerge.

“During the regular session and through the special session, the POCI Caucus and members of the House DFL Public Safety Committee worked tirelessly to move meaningful police accountability policies in negotiations with the Senate Republican Majority who refused to hold bad actors accountable. The bill as posted does not include the significant changes to hold police accountable or to prevent future harm.

Minnesota UBLC statement on Derek Chauvin sentence

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – The members of the United Black Legislative Caucus in the Minnesota Legislature issued the following statement:

“Derek Chauvin betrayed the trust of the community he had the duty to protect and serve. On Memorial Day of 2020, he acted with an incredible disregard for George Floyd’s life, for his family, and for his community. While we’re pleased he will be held accountable for his heartless actions over the murder of George Floyd, nothing can bring George Floyd back and we will all continue to live with the trauma of what occurred 13 months ago and will continue to hold a distrust for the institution of policing.

Freshman Minnesota lawmaker draws on personal experience as key police reform negotiator

DFL Rep. Cedrick Frazier quickly found a voice in Minnesota’s halls of power.

Cedrick Frazier’s anguish penetrated the grainy Zoom connection during a recent debate on police reform.

After listening to Minnesotans break down as they talked about loved ones killed by police, the freshman DFL House member from New Hope contrasted the urgency he felt with Senate Republicans’ slower approach to considering the latest package of police-accountability proposals.

“The reason we’re back here is more people have died in our streets in law enforcement interactions,” Frazier told colleagues and law enforcement representatives one morning last month. “We’re trying to raise the bar for everybody.” Continue reading.

UBLC Introduces Bill Making Juneteenth State Holiday

Following the federal government’s recent declaration of Juneteenth as a federal holiday, members of the Minnesota United Black Legislative Caucus (UBLC) plan to introduce a bill to make Juneteenth a state holiday. The UBLC released the following statement on this important holiday:

“As we look forward to celebrating and honoring the 155th Juneteenth today, it is important that we recognize the significance of this holiday throughout Minnesota. Juneteenth recognizes the end of a dark era of American history and allows us to acknowledge how far we’ve come and how far we have to go. This recognition of American history is important, but it does not signify the end of our work. In a time when laws are being passed across the nation which seek to suppress voting rights, block the teaching of America’s full history, and disinvest in Black communities, we know that we must continue to fight to reach a true justice. We look forward to seeing this bill pass into law and wish all Minnesotans a very happy Juneteenth!”

The United Black Legislative Caucus includes Representatives Esther Agbaje (59B), Cedrick Frazier (45A), Hodan Hassan (62A), Athena Hollins (66B), Rena Moran (65A), Mohamud Noor (60B), Ruth Richardson (52B), John Thompson (67A), and Senators Bobby Joe Champion (59), Omar Fateh (62). The People of Color & Indigenous (POCI) Caucus stands in solidarity with the UBLC.

POCI Caucus Statement on the Anniversary of the Murder of George Floyd

Saint Paul, Minnesota — Today, May 25, is the first anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. The Minnesota People of Color and Indigenous (POCI) Caucus released the following statement:

“We must ask ourselves: What has truly changed since last year? The fact remains that another name continues to replace George Floyd. Black men are still dying at the hands of law enforcement. Trust between our communities of color and police remains at record lows. BIPOC communities still do not feel that police keep them safe. Republican colleagues continue to devalue our lived experience and the experience of our communities as they use our calls for change as bargaining chips to secure tax cuts for the wealthy.

“Yet, we know we can never return to a world before the murder of George Floyd, our mindset on how our communities are affected by police and what role they play in our safety has permanently shifted. Whether this is a true sea change that will impact our entire nation remains to be seen. While the murderer was held accountable, and we managed to pass a modicum of police accountability legislation last year, we are meeting increased resistance from the status quo against our calls for more significant reforms.

Rep. Cedrick Frazier (HD45A) Update: May 13, 2021

Dear Neighbors,

Eid Mubarak to those who are celebrating this week! I know that many hearts may be heavy, tired, and exhausted from violence here at home, and abroad. It has been a difficult year, but it gives me hope to see so many passionate, outspoken people rise in solidarity.

We are approaching the end of session but negotiations still continue with the Senate Republicans. We have spent countless hours sitting in conference committees and fighting to keep our proposals. The bills I have authored this session are on the table and are an essential part of creating a better Minnesota. We need emergency paid sick leave (House File 41), we need police accountability, but we also need prevention from another act of violence driven by hate. House file 593 will ban police officers tasked with protection from affliation with white supremacist groups. This step towards public safety should not be controversial, and it seems that many other states in the U.S. feel the same way. The New York Times recently published an article describing the movement around this issue, you can read more here.

Rep. Cedrick Frazier (HD45A) Update: April 29, 2021

Dear Neighbors,

With four weeks remaining in the legislative session, my colleagues and I are working hard to create meaningful change and develop a strong, equitable budget for the next two years. This week, we finished passing our budget bills, comprehensive plans for each area of the budget (E-12 Education, Health and Human Services, and so on) that contain many individual bills. Together, the budget bills reflect our vision for the future and the feedback we’ve heard from Minnesotans.

After the Senate passes their own budget proposals, legislators from the House and the Senate will meet in conference committees to develop bills that both bodies can agree on. Finding strong compromises will be difficult, but I will keep fighting to ensure that all Minnesotans have the resources to weather the pandemic and thrive in the aftermath.

I feel honored to sit on the conference committee for Public Safety, an issue in desperate need of reform. I have been very outspoken about a safer vision for a better Minnesota and the specific steps we can take to get us there through effective legislation. I am looking forward to engaging in the discussions and negotiations that can help get us there.

House POCI Caucus Joins Call for Expedited Judiciary and Public Safety Conference Committee; Presses Senate to Act on Police Accountability

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — On Tuesday, April 27th, the Senate POCI Caucus sent a letter to Governor Walz and Legislative Leaders urging that the Public Safety and Judiciary conference committee begin it’s work immediately, that conferees be required to complete their work by the end of the week delivering the final bill that will be sent to the floor of both Houses by Monday, May 3rd, and be promptly sent to the Governor for his signature or veto. This is to ensure that these critical police reform decisions are given the time necessary to be discussed publicly and independently without being used as a bargaining chip in unrelated budget negotiations. The House POCI Caucus concurs with this call to action and released the following statement of support:

“In just two weeks since the killing of Daunte Wright, one week since the guilty verdict of Derek Chauvin, Senate Republicans are already sweeping police accountability under the rug. Our demands to transform our public safety and judicial system must not be ignored. Each day wasted is another day closer to another preventable tragedy. Governor Walz and the Legislative Leaders should not be fooled by the relative quiet. We are in the midst of a crisis, and our communities of color and Indigenous communities are demanding structural changes so we can live in a Minnesota where our lives are valued and protected. It is time that we learn from the loss of Daunte Wright, George Floyd, and countless others. We must pursue transformational police reform that will create a just Minnesota where everyone is treated fairly and safely.

Rep. Cedrick Frazier (HD45A) Update: April 16, 2021

Dear Neighbors,

While our community is in pain, grieving the loss of yet another Black man in Minnesota, we must stop playing politics. We’ve held dozens of hearings over the course of the session that were met with resistance and dismissiveness from police lobbyists and Republican members in both the Senate and the House.

The people of Minnesota deserve and demand a future where community trust is sacred, police officers are held accountable for misconduct, and justice is served for everyone. We cannot normalize waking up to a piling list of Black men killed by law enforcement officers.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: