Mayor Michael Hancock was among a large group of Colorado politicians Friday that issued messages of sympathy, condemnation and unity after a week of tragic national news.

Hancock’s message comes after Thursday’s shooting in Dallas that left five police officers dead. The shooting, which has been described as an ambush that targeted police officers, occurred during a peaceful march protesting the death of two African Americans at the hands of law enforcement this week that were filmed and broadcast on social media.

My heart is filled with sorrow for the tragedies that took place last night in Dallas and for the lives lost in St. Paul, Minn., Baton Rouge and too often across the nation. There are no words to make sense of the sickness that continues to rear its head in America.

Violence only begets violence, and we are a better country than that, we are better people than that. My thoughts and prayers go out to all those who have lost their loved ones and to a country reeling from such horror.

There is no greater covenant than the one between our safety officers and the community. But that covenant has been breached. All of us must commit to being the repairers of the breach. We must stand together as a community. We must decry the violence that tears at the very fabric of our society.

Today, we make a call to action in Denver to begin this reconciliation. I am asking our churches, faith leaders and community organizations to hold gatherings starting this weekend. Help provide a positive space for our community to mourn together, to voice their concerns together, and to work to find solutions together.

It will take the collective effort of each and every one of us to change what we see occurring across the country. We cannot afford to wait a moment longer before we take meaningful action. Let us begin by taking that action, together, today.

The Black Legislative Caucus in the House also issued a joint statement Friday on the week of violence that condemned the deaths of two African American men at the hands of law enforcement and Thursday’s brutal attack in Dallas on law enforcement. Co-chairs Reps. Jovan Melton, D-Aurora, and Angela Williams, D-Denver, along with Reps. Janet Buckner, D-Aurora, and Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora, were listed as signing on the statement.Their message, in part, read:

Law enforcement officers have sworn to protect and serve all communities and citizens, regardless of skin color. While we know that few public safety officers are a threat to our communities, the fact that these incidents continue to happen only highlight the importance of coming together to rebuild trust.

The vicious attack that took place in Dallas is not the way to resolve these issues. We condemn the actions of those who have taken it upon themselves to target law enforcement officers. The voice of the black community must be heard, but nonviolent resistance is the only way to achieve the much-needed reforms to end this epidemic of murder of black men, women and children.