The events of the last week have further emphasized the reality that Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color have known for generations: the daily experience of living in our country is profoundly unjust; inescapably defined and created by a continuing history of racial violence, genocide and oppression. In the United States, our experiences with government, law enforcement, wealth and power are shaped and determined by the color of our skin instead of our common humanity.
All of us, including the environmental, climate, and clean energy movements, are called to recognize, condemn and actively change our unjust reality.
In our work and in our lives we must reject racism, prejudice and white supremacy in all forms. As climate activists, we bear a particular responsibility to confront the fact that the historically white-led environmental movement has been dismissive of the leadership, contributions, and priorities of frontline communities and communities of color. We recognize that the struggle for social justice is not only inseparable from our mission to address the climate crisis, but also is critical to achieving a just, sustainable, and equitable future.
We are committed to remedying these injustices and are at the beginning of our journey to work with an anti-racist lens. We have a continued commitment to confront in ourselves the results of privilege and white supremacy, including socially-accepted white supremacist norms and the biases that those of us who are white carry as individuals, and that sometimes we reinforce as an organization.
Our commitment to racial justice is inseparable from our effort to bring about a climate-stable world. We stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement in the fight to eradicate white supremacy. We urge you to do the same.
Gregg Small
Executive Director
Climate Solutions
