Dear Resister,
History tells us that ordinary folks coming together, organizing themselves at the grassroots level, and standing up and fighting for systemic change is the way to create a better world. Whether it is police brutality and economic inequality at home or imperialism and environmental destruction around the world, people are always capable of turning the tide through popular, organized movements. We have done harder things in the past. We can do this again if we affirm that
Justice Is Essential.
Today we are living through a health and economic crisis. We are watching essential workers across the country put themselves and their health at risk to carry us as we navigate this pandemic. The medical staff, the grocery store clerks, delivery drivers, and teachers continue to show up, going above and beyond to ensure our health and safety. We also feel a collective sorrow as the pandemic disproportionately ravages through Black and brown communities. And yet, these same communities are taking the helm and continuing the centuries-long resistance against white supremacy and police violence that has been with us since our country’s inception. These community leaders are essential.
COVID-19 and the mass uprisings across the country highlight the need to maintain justice as essential. Resist grantees have always known this to be true and have been on the frontlines, responding to the communities forgotten by the national response to COVID-19 and brutalized by the police.
During the #JusticeIsEssential series Resist will highlight the work of grantees, people, and organizations all across the country who are responding to this moment with rigor, creativity, and love.
In Solidarity,
