We wanted to make sure you heard this powerful conversation from our most recent panel with nurse and movement leaders, including activist and scholar Angela Davis.
As part of our virtual 2020 CNA/NNOC National Convention this month, we convened a panel to help us understand how movements against racism can advance democracy and freedom for all. One of the panel’s key takeaways: Racial justice is about reorganizing society on the principles of solidarity and care.
On the fight to guarantee health care to all as a right, Angela Davis said it best: “Medicare for All is a pivotal structural transformation in health care. And I deeply appreciate the fact that the nurses' union has taken the lead in supporting this structural change."
But the panel went far beyond just health care. It was a call for unity and solidarity and to realize that this moment is an opportunity to build a mass movement to create the kind of society we want to live in.
Racial capitalism, which seeks to profit off domination and human suffering, invades every facet of our society. Only by putting the fight to end structural racism at the center of our efforts can we build a mass movement for Medicare for All that transcends our divisions and meets the demand of the moment.
You don’t need me to tell you that we’re living in extraordinary times. While the challenges we face can seem intimidating, more and more people are stepping up and getting involved in movements for change. We have an opportunity, now more than anytime in recent history, to take action and build the kind of world that our people deserve.
As I made clear during the panel, social movements are already doing this work in the same communities where we nurses work. We must look at these movements that are focused on fighting structural racism as collectively organized public health interventions, and we must join them.
In solidarity,
Cathy Kennedy
RN, President, California Nurses Association
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