We are parents and children, friends and neighbors, organizers and advocates, dreamers and realists, Puebloans and Fort Morganites and Coloradans, all called into this work together. We are angry—furious, enraged! We are devastated—shattered and overwhelmed. We are hurting and terrified and exhausted, and also hopeful and galvanized and ready.
No justice, no peace.
We are humans. We have different identities and ideologies and experiences, and each of our lives has been affected by racism in very different ways. Some of us have faced and continue to face violence, scarcity, prejudice, suppression, and exclusion because white supremacy has a stranglehold on our society and institutions. Others of us have personally benefited and continue to benefit from systemic racism, gaining access to resources, power, political representation, the protection of law, physical and emotional safety, and other white privileges. Today, we speak to you as a collection of humans—not as Center for Health Progress, but as the two dozen individuals that make up the staff and board of Center for Health Progress—who are all experiencing this moment, and the last 400 years that have built up to this moment, very differently.
No justice, no peace.
Black Lives Matter.
The uprising we’re seeing in towns and cities across the country is a beautifully raw expression of the pain and power of the black community, whose stolen labor built the United States and whose leadership continues to drive political, economic, and cultural change.
The pandemic we’re experiencing has exposed—to those privileged enough to not experience them daily—the inequities that have killed millions of people of color throughout our history. Many of those in power move slowly or not at all to enforce public health policies and protect individuals from financial ruin, while people of color die at an accelerated rate from COVID-19; however, they are swift and heavy-handed in their reaction to protests, which has in many cases initiated and escalated violence.
We mourn the murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, David McAtee, and the many, many others by an institution that is now and has always been militarized as a weapon against black Americans.
We reject the Trump administration’s calls for violence against peaceful protestors and the hateful rhetoric that further divides us as a people and country.
We commit to showing up for justice every single day. We commit to prioritizing and listening to the voices and needs of black people, indigenous people, and all people of color. Those of us who are white commit to examining the ways in which we hold up white supremacy and to being intentional about dismantling it in ourselves and our work. We all commit to fighting for laws and policies right here in our communities that make it possible for everyone to care for themselves and their families.
We ask that you join us in the fight.
- Donate to Black Lives Matter 5280, the Colorado Freedom Fund, the Denver Justice Project, Black Visions Collective, George Floyd Memorial Fund, Reclaim the Block, and other organizations leading the community response where you live
- Call and email your elected officials, including mayors, school board members, and district attorneys to demand accountability and change, such as the policy changes recommended by Campaign Zero, the American Public Health Association, and PolicyLink
- Sign your organization on to this letter and ask your Representative to support this House resolution condemning police violence and asking for accountability
- Protest, vote, volunteer, host a Know Your Rights training, and seek other ways to be active in your community
- Take care of yourself and others through art, shared meals, storytelling, and other healing acts
Know justice, know peace.
With love and solidarity,
Yesenia Beascochea | Dana Kennedy | Jessica Nguyen |
Jose Carmona | Chris Klene | Perla K. Rodriguez |
Lilia Cervantes | Steve Leazer | Joe Sammen |
Robert Donovan | Celesté Martinez | Garry Schalla |
Maisha Fields | Sarah McAfee | Martina Schulte |
Maggie Gómez | Arthur McFarlane II | Suzuho Shimasaki |
Regina L. Herrera Carpenter | Jacinta “Jacy” Montoya Price | Theresa M. Trujillo |
Maria de Jesus Diaz-Perez | Michelle Munoz | Carly Weisenberg |
Allison Neswood | Carrie Wilson |