HB 2309’s main sponsor, Bret Roberts (R-Maricopa), had this to say about it in a press release: “I’ve introduced HB 2309 to make every effort to keep our communities safe. I find it deeply troubling that violence, rioting, and the destruction of property has become an accepted norm in cities across the nation, and local leaders doing little to stop it.  We cannot enable such activity in Arizona and should take all appropriate steps to discourage it and punish those who engage in it.”

For years, there has been a coordinated effort between multiple law enforcement agencies to politically target and prosecute critics of the police. Particularly when those critics are Black and/or seeking Black liberation. These efforts have been particularly pronounced in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and Dion Johnson where hundreds of demonstrators, including well-known activists, have been targeted by a sprawling multi-agency apparatus and falsely charged with serious felonies, including street gang allegations.

This is an effort to weaponize the criminal legal system to jail, intimidate, and silence protesters of police violence who are demonstrating in defense of Black lives. These same agencies completely ignored the armed insurrection and occupation of government buildings, based on lies and conspiracy theories, by people who are Rep. Roberts’ allies. It’s completely unacceptable that those who feign to fight for liberty in the face of tyranny use tyrannical methods to try and silence opposition.

This bill is a racist political stunt that Bret Roberts is using to ignite his base. These Trump enablers are abusing their power during this crucial moment in history to further the political prosecutions that are happening here in Arizona. Rep. Roberts didn’t show up during the Phoenix uprising; he didn’t sit down with organizers and activists to better understand what was happening. Instead he took blurbs from the media and weaponized them to introduce harmful legislation that will further enable law enforcement on community members exercising their First Amendment Rights. What’s worse, there isn’t even a clear definition of unlawful assembly that has ever been established, which is why there is so much inconsistency between the charging decisions for each protester.

Other conservative states have pushed back on unlawful assembly to punish protesters and places like St. Louis have deemed this tactic unconstitutional. With lawmakers like Bret Roberts, Arizona will remain ground zero for racist, xenophobic, draconian laws. We need to get these kinds of politicians out of office.