Dear Prospera family,
The Prospera team has wanted to write something about everything that is happening for days, but it’s difficult for us to express in words what we feel.
We know that there is nothing we could possibly say or do to alleviate the immense pain that too many black families are feeling in this moment, in this country and around the world. And yet we don’t see any option but to speak up. Our hearts go out to the mothers, fathers, siblings, grandparents, cousins, friends, and loved ones of George Floyd, Sean Monterrosa, Angel Ramos, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Alton Sterling and all the too many that come before them.
Like many of you, we are angry, we are outraged, we are sad, afraid, and even hopeful that something fundamental can and will change. As a Latina immigrant organization, we are being shaken to take a stand, to speak out and do our part to denounce police violence against black people and do what it takes to dismantle racism within our own community.
We believe that understanding how the culture of white supremacy lives in our community is an important place to focus and we are committed to making this a central part of our work – it is not separate.
Prospera holds ourselves accountable for unlearning the culture of white supremacy that is now a driving force in our society and shows up in extreme explicit forms through police brutality and impunity. And we also know that it also shows up implicitly and in very hidden ways in our community. We make ourselves accountable to understanding and denouncing both.
The time has come we can’t look the other way. It’s time to take action, each one from our spaces: denouncing injustices, listening to the requests of our African-American brothers and sisters, educating our children, demonstrating and showing that we are not a minority, and that we can change this unequal and unjust system. That we will do everything in our power to heal and break this cycle of discrimination and violence, unlearning everything instilled.
It’s time to break this system because we have already seen that this one doesn’t work. How long are we going to wait for this change?
We don’t want to wait any longer.
With love and determination,
The Prospera Team
What is white supremacy culture? White supremacy culture is the idea that white people and the ideas, thoughts, beliefs, and actions of white people are superior to People of Color and their ideas, thoughts, beliefs, and actions. Culture is powerful precisely because it is so present and at the same time so very difficult to name or identify.
Join us in taking a stand. Join us in unlearning and denouncing white supremacy culture. We want to invite you to read this blog “The characteristics of white supremacy culture” about how white supremacy manifests and it can be countered here.
To learn more about the Black Lives Matter movement, please visit their website: https://blacklivesmatter.com/
Resources
Recursos antirracistas en español