Dear John,
The Black freedom movement is essential to our fight for dignity and justice for all. We cannot talk about climate and worker justice without talking about historic racial injustices that have plagued our communities. Every day, Black people are targeted by police violence, work in dangerous, low-wage jobs, and live in polluted communities. It is imperative that our movements center the work of dismantling systemic racism and white supremacy and create a world where Black people can thrive.
Tomorrow is Juneteenth, where we commemorate the end of slavery in the United States while acknowledging the ongoing fight for freedom of Black people across the world. On this day, our team at ALIGN reaffirms our commitment to building multiracial, multigenerational coalitions that say in a unified voice that Black Lives Matter. In all facets of our work, our fight for economic and climate justice must intersect with the movement for Black freedom, dignity, and justice.
The historic black-led union organizing drive in the Amazon warehouses in Bessemer, Alabama - supported by our partners RWDSU - showed that fighting anti-black violence in the workplace is key to worker justice. Corporations like Amazon have used their monopoly power to maintain the surveillance, policing, and murder of Black people by working with police and ICE. We must stand up to dangerous corporate agendas that target and destroy black communities.
Black, indigenous, and people of color have also led the resistance against environmental injustice. Frontline communities are being hit the hardest by heat waves, drought, air and water pollution, and hurricanes. We are committed to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the frontline communities fighting for a just transition so we can create green, union jobs that build and maintain a sustainable economy that works for everyone.
Juneteenth acknowledges a long legacy of slavery and the necessity of Black freedom struggle and resistance across all corners of our movements. Together, we can honor that legacy with a relentless, unwavering commitment to Black lives and liberation.
In solidarity,
Maritza Silva-Farrell
Executive Director
ALIGN NY
