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Dear John,

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day! As we honor the monumental legacy of
the civil rights pioneer, we must reflect deeply on his radical approach
to civic activism and leverage our collective power to bring about
long-overdue justice and equality for all. 

The key to Dr. King’s activism was “people power.” He had the support of
Black women leaders, such as Ella Jo Baker and Coretta Scott King, who
advised him on grassroots organizing strategies.^1 He had the support of
student leaders, who coordinated their own protests at lunch counters
across the nation and worked alongside him to combat segregation.^2 And he
had the support of allies, who made daily trips to federal offices to
demand economic justice and stepped up where needed—including financially.

Color Of Change, too, is people-powered. When 900 Color Of Change members
donated to our Black Joy Book Drive, we were able to give away more than
650 books to Black children in states where critical race theory was
banned. And when 25,000 Color Of Change members signed our
#JusticeforGreenwood petition, we were able to pressure the Centennial
Commission to allocate $3 million to survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race
Massacre, allowing them to cover urgent needs (e.g., housing) and
attorneys’ fees as they continue their fight for justice.

You, John, and our 7 million members are our most powerful
weapon in the fight against racial injustice and structural inequality.
[ [link removed] ]In the spirit of Dr. King, will you power our efforts to win real-world
change for Black people?

[ [link removed] ]YES, I WILL CHIP IN $5 IN HONOR OF DR. KING!

Dr. King once shared that “the problems of racial injustice and economic
injustice cannot be solved without a radical redistribution of political
and economic power”—meaning, we must work together to dismantle the
systems, structures, and institutions that hold our people back. And,
John, Color Of Change is doing just that. 

* We’ve won reparations campaigns aimed at redressing the economic
exploitation of Black folks and reclaiming ownership over stolen
goods/labor, such as driving an unprecedented number of calls to the
Los Angeles County Supervisors Office, which led to the historic
return of “Bruce Beach” land to descendants of a Black couple who were
ousted a century ago. 
* We’ve run corporate accountability campaigns aimed at limiting
corporate influence on public policy measures, specifically those to
which Black lives are tied, such as Delta’s push for the CDC to
shorten the COVID quarantine period so that its workers would be
denied ample sick time. 
* And we’ve run political accountability campaigns aimed at leveraging
Black political power to push for reform that would address structural
inequalities, such as broad student debt elimination and the
ultra-millionaire wealth tax. 

At Color Of Change, we’re constantly reimagining pathways to our
collective liberation and organizing accordingly. But, John,
we’ve got our work cut out for us. [ [link removed] ]If we’re truly going to realize Dr.
King’s vision for racial justice, then we need your support!

[ [link removed] ]DONATE TO KEEP OUR WORK GOING

Until justice is real,

— Jade, Johnny, Erica, Amanda, Evan, Imani, FolaSade, Tyler, Eesha,
Taurjhai, Angel, Stasia, and Ciera

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 1. Julie Scelfo, “On MLK Day, honor the mother of the civil rights
movement, too,” Time, January 16, 2017,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] Jeanne Theoharris,
“Coretta Scott King and the civil rights movement’s hidden women,” The
Atlantic, February 2018,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 2. “Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC),” The Martin Luther
King, Jr. Research and Education Institute (n.d.),
[ [link removed] ][link removed]



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