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When I look back on the last year, amidst all the turmoil and devastation, there are moments of inspiration and accomplishments that rise to the surface for me. Among the most important of these is that Black leaders — organizers and voters alike — enfranchised a more inclusive electorate in record numbers, flipping the balance of power in the United States. And we won't stop fighting to create an equitable future for all. From Stacey Abrams and other Black women building an incredible voter-outreach operation in Georgia — one that helped lay the groundwork for Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock to take his seat as the first Black senator from that state — to Kamala Harris rising to be our first Black and Indian American woman Vice President of the United States, these great accomplishments are victories for Black Americans. But more important for us all to understand is that they're victories that will benefit ALL Americans. And yet, despite the progress that so often comes on the backs of Black and Brown communities and is born directly from our labor, structural racism and systemic inequality remain very real and hold so many back. While February marks Black History Month as an opportunity to celebrate and lift up our Black leaders, we know all too well that we as a nation are failing at this on a much broader scale. We're too often left to grapple with the fear, uncertainty, and trauma that come from living under the threat of white supremacist violence in all of its forms, the persistent structural barriers to racial justice, and the erosion of democracy that has permeated the last four years. We cannot, we must not, limit our acknowledgment of Black leaders to a singular month of the year. While we need no accolades, we deserve them. Our seat at the table isn't up for discussion, and it's unacceptable — and to our collective detriment as a country — for any American to pretend that it is. From the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, to the end of Jim Crow, from the progress of the civil rights movement, to the election of our first Black president, and including today's fight to ensure all Americans know that Black Lives Matter: All of these moments represent America at a crossroads. These are moments when the country has had to make a choice; when people demand that the words in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights come to life as how our country behaves; that policies and practices are equitably distributed among all people, not just a select few. "Justice, liberty, and freedom" can and must transcend its role as an aspirational catchphrase and become a way of life for all of us. As a nation, we must move beyond our racist roots that inspired the attempted coup last month. We have so much more work to do. As we move forward, we are grateful for your partnership for progress and know that you're with us in creating a world that is equitable for all — as so many Black Americans have done before and as so many continue to do each and every day. For progress, Daniella Gibbs Léger Executive Vice President, Communications and Strategy Center for American Progress
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