Chet P. Hewitt, president and CEO of Sierra Health Foundation and CEO of The Center, issued this statement after viewing the Memphis Police Department’s body camera footage that showed the deadly actions that took the life of Sacramento native Tyre Nichols:
“Tyre Nichols was a son of Sacramento. I’m sad and angry at the callous indifference I saw in the video of his murder. Still, I know that my grief pales in comparison to what his mother and family feel.
“Our shared safety is rooted in healthy communities — not law enforcement. Time and again we see that training and diversity efforts have been no match for the dehumanizing and racist culture that exists within policing. Once again, we are heartbroken that another person lost their life to police violence.
“I’m reminded of what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said during the 1963 March on Washington, ‘We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro [Black people] is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.’”
Sierra Health Foundation joined philanthropic institutions throughout California in signing onto the California Black Freedom Fund: Philanthropic Sign-On Letter in Response to Police Violence (CABlackFreedomFund.org).