Justice Agenda-Feb2025
The Justice Agenda
The aggressive rollback of civil rights protections this year is unprecedented in its scope and speed.
As federal policies roll back decades of hard-fought gains in equity, justice, and human dignity, Vermont must rise as a beacon of protection and progress. We’re asking the legislature to make the Justice Agenda a top legislative priority and to act with boldness and urgency to safeguard the fundamental rights of all Vermonters.
The Justice Agenda outlines essential steps toward equity and justice, including:
- Equal Protection Constitutional Amendment, enshrining a permanent safeguard against discrimination in Vermont’s constitution (PR.4).
- Vermont Civil Rights Sovereignty and Equal Protection Act of 2026 (Proposed Bill).
- Human Rights Commission policy to strengthen the infrastructure needed to investigate and address discrimination (H.38).
- Community health and wellness programming and services that prioritize BIPOC and underserved communities, ensuring equitable access to care and healing (H.184).
- Passage of an Economic Justice Act, advancing policies to close the racial wealth gap and ensure equitable economic opportunities for all Vermonters (H.451)
- Statewide constitutional and accountable policing, reinforcing transparency, fairness, and trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve (H.361).
- System-wide justice system data collection, providing the necessary insights to identify and rectify systemic inequities (H.382).
- Creation of the Office of Health Equity, addressing the persistent health disparities that disproportionately impact marginalized communities (S.2).
- Expansion of the powers and independence of the Office of Racial Equity, allowing it to act decisively and without political interference (H.357)
- Creation of a Reparations Task Force, taking the first step toward addressing historical and ongoing racial injustice (H.499)
Without immediate legislative action:
BIPOC and underserved communities will face greater barriers to health care, housing, and economic opportunity.
Law enforcement accountability will falter, eroding public trust and safety.
Racial disparities will deepen
Vermont risks becoming complicit in a national movement to dismantle civil rights protections.
Vermont has the opportunity to be a sanctuary for justice, equity, and human rights. History will judge us not only by the challenges we faced, but by the actions we took to meet them. Now is the time for bold leadership. The legislature took the position that racism was a public health emergency in the 2021 Joint Legislative Resolution R-113. Today, the building is on fire! Now is not the time for the legislature to slow walk the work or cower.
If there was ever a time for the legislature to be true to those commitments, this is their moment. It’s up to us to make sure that the legislature knows that we are watching them and counting them to rise to this historical moment. Join us as we stand to do our part in this fight for justice and the soul of this nation.
Read more on the Justice Agenda here.
