Friend,

I was in Charlottesville on August 12th, 2017. As a Black student at the University of Virginia, I've seen firsthand what happens when violent, racist mobs attack a community and authorities are unprepared.

January 6th in D.C.—where I live now—was eerily similar. A violent mob hell-bent on overturning Joe Biden's election win descended on D.C., transforming our nation's capital and my home into a scene of deadly chaos.

If the District of Columbia were a state, authorities here could have called in the National Guard to protect people and break up the mob. Instead, rioters were able to breach the Capitol, kill a police officer, destroy property, and stalk the halls carrying Confederate flags.

This was a warning: We need to make Washington, D.C. the 51st state to protect our democracy and advance racial equity (more on that below). Sign our petition today to demand Congress take action on D.C. statehood.

D.C. statehood isn't just an issue of democracy—it's an issue of racial justice.

Washington, D.C. is a majority Black city with a population larger than some states. Yet because D.C. isn't a state, no one who lives here has representation in Congress. D.C. didn't even have a vote in impeaching the president who put its residents in danger.

D.C. statehood is also a key to bold climate action. D.C.'s city government has a 100% renewable energy standard by 2032. The vast majority of D.C. residents want climate action, and representatives of the 51st state would vote accordingly.

With the presidency and the House and Senate in narrow Democratic control, our elected leaders have the chance of a lifetime to achieve D.C. statehood. Like many other crucial progressive victories, the path to get there is through eliminating the filibuster. And the time is now.

We must seize this moment to save our democracy, blot out a deep racial injustice, and pave the way for bold climate action.

Making D.C. the 51st state would be a pivotal step toward all three. Sign the petition today, alongside me, in support of D.C. statehood.

Thank you,

Wes Gobar
Deputy Press Secretary, Evergreen Action