Color Of Change PAC Endorses George Gascón for Los Angeles County District Attorney
National racial justice group announces support of Gascón’s bid to continue his progressive reform campaign
Today, Color Of Change PAC, the political action committee of the nation’s largest online racial justice group, announced their endorsement of George Gascón for Los Angeles County District Attorney. The Democratic primary is scheduled for March 3.
“As a lifelong public servant and a steward of progressive change, George Gascón is the right choice for Los Angeles County DA,” Arisha Hatch, Director of Color Of Change PAC, said. “Throughout his career, he has struck the perfect balance between safety and fairness, driving crime to historic lows without compromising his values of decarceration, decriminalization, and equality in justice.
“Gascón has proven that we can achieve public safety without criminalizing Black people or relying on incarceration. As Los Angeles County District Attorney, we are confident he will bring the change and reform that Los Angeles desperately needs.”
“DA Jackie Lacey’s tenure as District Attorney, on the other hand, has been both dangerous and ineffective. In her eight years in office, she has failed to hold police accountable for the fatal shootings of Black residents and has perpetuated a justice system that kneels to wealthy, powerful defendants. She simply is not fit to run the largest prosecutor’s office in the nation; it’s time to elect a true progressive to the L.A. District Attorney’s Office.”
George Gascón is a reform-minded candidate with a history of strong and ambitious leadership. As San Francisco DA, Gascón developed national models that are on the forefront of progressive criminal justice reform efforts, expunging more than 9,000 marijuana convictions, co-authoring legislation to reduce punishments for nonviolent offenses, and pushing to eliminate racial bias in charging decisions. He was also the only DA in California to publicly support a policy change to update the standard for police use of deadly force. And in the wake of the #MeToo movement, Gascón has proven that he is willing to stand up for crime victims. In San Francisco, he supported laws to expand victims’ rights, made it easier to victims to report crime, and fought to end San Francisco’s backlog of untested rape kits, which led to the prosecution of sexual assault cases at more than twice the national rate.
Color Of Change PAC’s endorsement of George Gascón coincides with its endorsement of Audia Jones for Harris County District Attorney, which was also announced today. It also comes one week after the PAC joined with musician and activist John Legend to endorse the reelection of Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx in Illinois.
Color Of Change PAC is a Political Action Committee focused on building independent Black political power, amplifying Black voices, electing candidates who share our values, and holding them accountable to our communities.