Progress Now Statement on White Supremacy

The undersigned state affiliates of ProgressNow released the following statement today regarding last week’s murder of George Floyd and the ongoing murder of Black people at the hands of police in this country.

“George Floyd. Jamar Clark. Philando Castile. Thurman Blevins. Ahmaud Aubrey. Breonna Taylor. Marcus-David Peters. Freddie Gray. Patrick Harmon. Darrien Hunt. Damon Grimes. Aiyana Jones. De’Von Bailey. Elijah McClain. Sandra Bland. Botham Jean. Atiatana Jefferson. Charleena Lyles. 

We say their names to keep alive the memory and knowledge of Black Americans whose lives were stolen by anti-Black racism, white supremacy, and police brutality. There are many more names we don’t know. As leaders working for racial, social, and economic justice, we stand unequivocally with the Black community and communities of color. Our most important work in this moment is to follow the leadership of powerful Black leaders and dedicate ourselves to identifying and rooting out systemic and internalized white supremacy. We honor our nation’s history of protest, disruption, and civil disobedience as an effective, meaningful tactic to challenge oppression and bring about necessary change.

“For centuries, social norms and government structures have functioned to dehumanize and subjugate people of color to the benefit of white people. This is white privilege and white supremacy. We are committed to using our accumulated privileges to help dismantle racist systems so we can all be free. 

We will listen. We will learn. We will use our position as progressive leaders to advocate for meaningful policy change, and to have conversations within our own families and neighborhoods to affect change. We will use our organizations to widely share and uplift the voices of people of color to ensure the lived experiences (and horrors) are not lost on our communities. And we will encourage others to do the same.  

ProgressNow is a network of state-based progressive communications hubs. This statement is issued and signed by the following state organizations:

Alliance for a Better Utah

Battle Born Progress

Fuse Washington

Granite State Progress

Our Maryland

Progress Florida

Progress Iowa

Progress Michigan

ProgressNow Colorado

ProgressNow New Mexico

Progress Virginia