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Hi there,
When the COVID-19 pandemic ricocheted around the world, it upended our societies and brought our lives to a standstill. But today in the US, we wake up in a country where it is clear not everything has stood still. Racism has not stood still. Bigotry has not stood still. The fatal disparity that people of color face—whether at the hands of law enforcement or the whims of our health care system—has not stood still.
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On Friday, President Obama shared this video from 12-year-old Keedron Bryant, putting into song the anguish and heartbreak millions share after the senseless killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and too many more.
We wanted to share this video with you today, as well as the President’s own words about the tragic events of the past several weeks.
It’s natural to wish for life “to just get back to normal” as a pandemic and economic crisis upend everything around us. But we have to remember that for millions of Americans, being treated differently on account of race is tragically, painfully, maddeningly “normal” – whether it’s while dealing with the health care system, or interacting with the criminal justice system, or jogging down the street, or just watching birds in a park.
This shouldn’t be “normal” in 2020 America. It can’t be “normal.” If we want our children to grow up in a nation that lives up to its highest ideals, we can and must be better.
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After a Chicago community call with President Obama, community organizers from across Chicago collaborated to create We Got Us, an initiative delivering packages of essential supplies to the city’s South and West Sides. Their mission goes beyond providing immediate aid to the communities that have been disproportionately affected by the virus—these organizers want to help restructure systems to be more inclusive of the neighborhoods they serve. |
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