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Des Moines Black Lives Matter has been hounding Gov. Kim Reynolds on Twitter the last week. And it appears their hounding has worked.

After the Iowa Legislature unanimously passed House File 2647, a “police reform bill,” the group turned its attention to meeting with Reynolds.

Des Moines Black Lives Matter posted on June 11 that they scheduled over 400 appointments with Reynolds. She cancelled her 10 a.m. press conferences and “ghosted us when we were ready to meet TODAY. She is evading conversation with the leaders of our movement. She can’t run for too much longer #WhereIsKim.”

Then, they shared this:

Des Moines Black Lives Matter has also issued “demands,” which includes the defunding of the Des Moines Police Department. They also “demand” that House File 2532 be stopped. House File 2532 is a bill that deals with classroom behavior.

Des Moines Black Lives Matter continued with its anti-police rhetoric, sharing an Instagram post from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez:

“An America with defunded police looks like a suburb.”

An hour after posting that, the group posted that it just finished meeting with Reynolds.

“After urging her to sign an executive order to restore voting rights to all Iowans, she committed to having the order drafted for us to review when we meet with her again on Monday morning.”

You can watch post-meeting reaction here from Iowa Starting Line:

The Iowa Legislature has worked over the course of the last two legislative sessions on a constitutional amendment that would go before Iowans and allow automatic restoration of voting rights for most felons.

But Des Moines Black Lives Matter doesn’t like that route.

“Due to the unjust and disproportionate nature of our state’s judicial system, currently 1 out of every 10 black adults in Iowa cannot vote,” a release from the group said. “This reality is a stain on our state, and an embarrassment for Gov. Reynolds and every elected representative serving in our Capitol.”

The group said the constitutional amendment is an attempt to “carry out the legacy of racist Jim Crow laws, while still appeasing calls for change.”

The group says the amendment must not include any stipulations on the right to vote, including restitution payments.

The group continued its calls for the Des Moines Police Department to be defunded on Saturday.

They also said to keep pressure on Reynolds.

“She must know that we will hold her accountable,” they said.

Author: Jacob Hall

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