“Ours is not the struggle of one day, one week, or one year. Ours is not the struggle of one judicial appointment or presidential term. Ours is the struggle of a lifetime, or maybe even many lifetimes, and each one of us in every generation must do our part.” - John Lewis, Civil Rights Activist and Former Congressman (D-GA)

Friend,

Each February, Black History Month provides an opportunity to recognize and honor the contributions of the African Diaspora in the United States. It also serves as a call to action for each of us to take part in the ongoing struggle for racial justice in this country.

In that spirit, we are spotlighting three organizations doing critical work to advance the rights and wellbeing of Black communities across the country. In honor of Black History Month, we invite you to join us in supporting their work.

Supporting health equity: As of 2020, the maternal mortality rate in the U.S. was more than three times the rate of most other high-income countries. Black women, facing compounding factors of systemic racism, bias in healthcare, and coverage gaps, experience worse reproductive, prenatal, and postpartum health outcomes than any other racial or ethnic group. The National Birth Equity Collaborative is one of the nation’s leading organizations advocating for change in the Black maternal health and infancy mortality crises.

Fighting for the truth in schools: Following the murder of George Floyd in 2020, which sparked sweeping racial justice protests across the country, states began passing laws to restrict or ban the accurate teaching of American history, including its history of systemic racism. This is a dangerous and calculated attempt to erase the lived experiences of Black communities and other communities of color in the U.S. The NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) is challenging these attacks on several fronts, including filing a lawsuit to stop Florida Govenor Ron DeSantis’ law that restricts educators and students from learning about issues of race and gender in the classroom.

Building community power: In 2020, Black Americans turned out in historic numbers to vote, playing a critical role in preventing four more years of Trump and helping Democrats secure a Senate majority. They did so despite efforts to suppress voting rights, with tactics that have been proven to disproportionately impact communities of color and people of low-income. One of the organizations that helped strengthen turnout again in 2022 was Black Voters Matter (BVM). BVM works to build power in marginalized, predominantly Black communities through voter registration, turnout, and policy advocacy. BVM is also investing in long-term community power, which includes increasing representation in Congress and advocating for lawmakers to act on critical issues like police accountability, voting rights, and criminal legal system reforms.

The work of building a more just society, one in which our laws, policies, and systems recognize the dignity and humanity of all people, will require the participation of each of us across lines of race, wealth, gender, and immigration status.

Thank you for joining us in celebrating Black History Month.

Sincerely,

Sara K. Gould
Interim Executive Director
National Immigration Law Center