This is a terrible moment for us all. We share the sense of outrage and profound sadness at the injustice we have witnessed. We are heartbroken by the senseless killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and those that came before them. Our society is being traumatized by the systemic, institutional racism that pervades the structures that govern and rule our citizenry.
Our Black neighbors live in fear every second of every day that their name will be the next that needs to be remembered. That their son or daughter may be the next Black citizen murdered in the streets by people who swore to protect them.
We affirm to our Black employees loudly and openly that you are safe at work from racism and discrimination. It is not lost on us that your lives have been traumatized repeatedly and you are expected to show up at work every day with a positive attitude and consistent productivity that benefits each CRS employee. We see you. And we share in your grief at this moment in history.
How will we address this with our employees? Ignoring it is not an option. We do a deep disservice to ourselves by turning a blind eye and pretending that these events aren’t impacting all of us, particularly our Black employees and their families.
We have a responsibility and we must stay true to our values. CRS is truly a great place to work, and we must continue to prove it. Our employees deserve this, our culture deserves this. We are with you. Black Lives Matter. As Angela Y. Davis said, “Any genuine opponent of racism has to identify as an anti-racist, not simply as “not racist.”
Inherent bias runs deep, we are each responsible for unlearning racism. To this end, please start by reading these recommendations below:
- Why You Need to Stop Saying “All Lives Matter” https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/politics/a27075028/black-lives-matter-explained/
- Being Antiracist https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/being-antiracist
- Talking to Kids About Racism, Early and Often https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/03/parenting/kids-books-racism.html
