Racism is more than alive in this country– it has been emboldened. So long as we tip-toe around the fragility and discomfort of some who wish to dismiss “talking about race,” the longer we let this insidious and inhumane sentiment brew at the cost of black lives. George Floyd, Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor, Sandra Bland, Ahmaud Arbery, Freddie Gray, Eric Garner, and too many more didn’t have the luxury of avoiding “discomfort” – race played a role from the moment they got out of bed, went for a jog, or encountered those sworn to protect them. To dismiss the daily role that race still plays in this country is to deny the humanity of black people.
We must be more intentional about highlighting and connecting our legislative work to the cause of undoing systemic racism that is not only present in law enforcement, but in education, housing, healthcare, and more. This page is dedicated to transparently showing the public how Rep. Vargas is combatting systemic racism.
Please note this is not a comprehensive list of everything we're working on. Also, some of the initiatives and bills deal with the effects of systemic racism, while others get at the root causes of systemic racism. We find both to be important.