We bear witness to Black lives extinguished by police and vigilantes.
These losses are singular and cannot be conflated.
Each person killed deserved a life of joy and safety, not one cut short by anti-Black, state-sanctioned violence. In each instance, a family was robbed of a loved one, a community stripped of a unique mind and soul.
We condemn the brutal actions of individual perpetrators – and the institutional racism that supports, condones, and protects those actions.
We acknowledge the deep history of this crisis that underlies our current public reckoning.
We acknowledge that many of our neighbors and colleagues have known and lived generations of racial oppression – and have been vocally and bodily demanding change all along.
We acknowledge that, as a primarily white staff, our privilege, ignorance, and inaction are all part of the problem. To be an anti-racist organization, we must prioritize the needs and voices of our colleagues and partners who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color – without layering the burden of our overdue education on top of their trauma.
Promises are hollow without action. Let us show first, tell later.
We at Sustainable Conservation humbly add our voices to all those who call for justice for Black lives.