Friend — the reckless killing of Black people must stop.
Our country, and we as a people, cannot bear it. Every one of us has a responsibility to speak up against the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and too many others, and to address the conditions and policies that led to their deaths.
We must acknowledge that racism is a part of our society and that in order to address these issues we need to have an honest national conversation about race. That starts by making sure Mr. Floyd’s family sees justice but must go well beyond that to a full accounting of the impact of racism on our nation.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of the two Americas — one full of equity, prosperity, and opportunity; the other, rooted in indignity, inhumanity, and despair. The killing of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis Police has laid bare these inequities — and has been the flashpoint for years of racial inequity, including gentrification, income disparity between white and black families, and history of sanctioned racism and police misconduct.
To move forward as a nation, we must address the root cause of these issues and work toward a more just and equitable future.
In solidarity,
Tom
