We at The Willow are outraged at the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and so many other Black people at the hands of police officers.
We stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and the Black community that has, for far too long, been the victim of police brutality and systemic inequality. This inequality has not only gone unresolved and ignored, but has been upheld by systems and people at all levels of government, judicial systems, and law enforcement who maintain a status quo that is dangerous to Black bodies.
Because we know white supremacy exists inside our institutions, we call on our government, courts, and law enforcement at the national, state, and local levels to investigate and hold accountable all acts of racist violence by officers and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.
We demand that government and law enforcement agencies at every level institute sweeping reforms. They must listen to the voices of People of Color, root out racism, and swiftly act to remove it from the ranks of those who are meant to protect and serve. The guiding principles of The Willow are equity, community, advocacy, education, and support. All five of these principles require that we be active within our service area to influence police, local government, and those inside the court system to understand implicit bias for People of Color, and particularly how that affects survivors of domestic violence.
We believe resources allocated to systems that are successful in preventing violence against marginalized people and protecting them from trauma, violence, and abuse are far more beneficial than those currently in place. We are committed to providing culturally safe support to People of Color.
We will continue in our work to constantly reflect internally on our practices and hold ourselves accountable, as well as provide communities in our service area with education and prevention content.
Black Lives Matter. The Willow stands with you.
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