Candace ValenzuelaVerified account

I am heartbroken over the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota. I support the firing of the officers responsible and believe that they must be tried in a court of law. This week, we mourn not only George Floyd, but also Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery.

It is not lost on me that as we continue to break barriers for people of color across the United States, even in elected office, Black Americans continue to comprise an alarming amount of police brutality cases.

While Black Americans make up 13% of the U.S. population, we comprise over 24% of police brutality cases. I am reminded that black mothers comprise over 37% of those who die during childbirth - higher than any other demographic.

We are also confronted with the fact that Black Americans are dying at more than twice the rate of white Americans during this pandemic.

As a mother to two beautiful black Latino boys, I watch our President tweet out permission to gun down protestors, and I am reminded that to be black in the United States is often to be seen as less than.