This week has been a turning point for our community.
At ECS, we stand in solidarity with the people who have taken to the streets, calling for accountability in the police killing of George Floyd. We join them in
demanding
justice. We share their mandate for reform.
We stand with communities of color who have endured systems of violence that trace their roots back to the very origins of our country. Black Americans have experienced hundreds of years of institutionalized racism and economic inequality - the remnants of
slavery, segregation, and Jim Crow continuing in our modern times. We
elevate the voices
of these communities and know that we will never end homelessness in San Francisco if we do not commit ourselves to reform and justice.
We express our deep condolences to the loved ones of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, David McAtee, and Tony McDade. We mourn with their families and friends, and the loved ones of countless others who have been killed by the police. We
condemn the violence perpetrated against communities of color at the hands of the state, and recognize that this violence is not always as overt as a police officer’s knee on a man’s neck.
The
underfunding of public education in Black communities is itself violence. A lack of job opportunities, substandard housing conditions, inadequate access to medical care, and bias within the justice system are all forms of institutional violence.
We live in a fundamentally unequal society, where our public and private systems lead to the marginalization of our Black neighbors. The effects of mass incarceration on communities of color are
well-documented. High rates of incarceration
disrupt the family and social structures of targeted communities, leading to intergenerational poverty. This poverty, stemming from racism, results in high occurren
ces
of homelessness in these same communities. In our own city, Black San Franciscans make up 5% of the city’s population, but 37% of the individuals experiencing homelessness.
We honor our Episcopal roots, which teach us to transform unjust structures in society, and be catalysts for equality and change. We commit to addressing institutional racism, and the way our systems directly lead to the public health crisis of homelessness we see on our streets.
We have a mandate to create a better future. Justice can no longer be postponed. Black lives matter.
In solidarity,
