Our county is hurting. Our communities are mourning. But the pain, hurt, and defeat Black people feel is immeasurable. We have seen time and time again the value of black life to be disregarded. Our country’s past shows this to be true as well as our present. We mourn the life of George Floyd and will continue to #sayhisname – but his name is not the only one we should be speaking and remembering. Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Aubrey, Sean Reed, Tony McDade, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, and SO MANY OTHERS. Racism is the thread within our society and has entangled us all and coiled its way into our daily lives, rituals, and passings.
If we are what we say we are, “The land of the free and the home of the brave – then this MUST apply to ALL people – including and especially Black and Brown people. As an organization that values cultural equity and diversity, it would be unjust for us to sit back and not speak up. To be complacent is to be complicit and our community deserves better. So we ask, what can we do? How can we serve? What do you need?
Black lives matter. They will always matter. And we stand and will act, now more than ever.
In solidarity,
Dance Metro DC Team
Resources to begin taking action
Watch:
Rachel Cargle’s Public Address on Revolution: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leBPMyQ60HM
Follow:
@grassrootslaw (Instagram)
@shawnking (Instagram)
@rachel.cargle (Instagram)
@munroebergdorf (Instagram)
Call:
Call Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison at 651-296-3353. Call Gov. Walz at 651-201-3400. (Mike Freeman was taken off the case and Attorney General Ellison has taken over the case for George Floyd). Calls and letters help.
Read:
Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nation’s Capital
Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race
Sign:
Justice for George Floyd
Educate:
Obama Foundation: Anguish and Action
Organize:
The Action PAC
Policing Campaign Toolkit