Bacon Statement on Protests and Racial Equity 

Omaha, Neb. – Congressman Don Bacon (NE-02) today issued the following statement in regard to the unwarranted death of George Floyd and protests held in Omaha:

“Last night, Omahans came together as one with the intention to peacefully protest the unwarranted death of George Floyd while being apprehended by law enforcement in Minneapolis. Floyd's tragic death takes place against a backdrop of systemic inequities, particularly for African-Americans. Fellow citizens are understandably hurt, angry and scared. I fully support the God-given and Constitutionally protected right of people to assemble and peacefully protest. The vandalism perpetuated by a few individuals was wrong and does nothing to support and honor the memory of George Floyd. Those who peacefully protested did so with honor and integrity, and I thank them.

“I thank the Omaha Police Department, Nebraska State Patrol and other law enforcement agencies who acted with respect and dignity last night. I also thank our local law enforcement across the 2^nd Congressional district who have responded to recent events with a commitment to accountability and transparency, and to work even harder to build greater trust with communities where that relationship has eroded by what happened in Minnesota. Our local law enforcement has worked hard to build strong community relations and trust, and will continue to do so. 

“We want to achieve what our Declaration of Independence called for when it said, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.’ We are a nation that yearns for justice for all and equality under the law. We know we have not achieved that yet, but we will not give up in perfecting our nation. The beauty of our country is that we can identify problems and we work hard to improve our shortcomings. We will work to implement positive change and push toward racial equity, and we do so by asking God for his guidance and blessing, as neighbors and as one community."

Rep. Bacon knows this is an issue that needs to be addressed now and has worked on the following legislative items:

• Cosponsored the 400 Years of African-American History Commission Act which, among other things, includes the development of programs to acknowledge the impact of slavery and laws that enforced racial discrimination had on the United States
• Introduced Anti-lynching legislation which establishes a new criminal civil rights violation for lynching. Specifically, a person who conspires to commit certain civil rights offenses (e.g., a hate crime act) is subject to criminal penalties
• Cosponsored the National Opposition to Hate, Assault, and Threats to Equality Act which provides incentives for hate crime reporting, provides grants for State-run hate crime hotlines, and establishes additional penalties for individuals convicted under the James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act
• Cosponsored the Bridging Agency Data Gaps and Ensuring Safety for Native Communities Act which modifies policies and procedures related to information sharing, reporting and investigation of missing, unidentified, and murdered Native Americans
• Hosted a virtual Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) event
• Supported grant funding for law enforcement training and community policing.

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