Where We Stand

No longer will appeasement suffice. No longer is it acceptable to present a few people as sacrificial lambs so the country can go on with business-as-usual. Something fundamental has to change in how we relate to each other as human beings. And this will have to start with deep reform of the institutions that regulate how we interact with each other.  

It is time to confront the reality that the institutions that are supposed to safeguard our justice, security, and freedom are reinforcing divisions and racism - and veering away from our aspirations as responsible citizens who value and respect each other as equal human beings. Instead, they are protecting and propagating the privilege of the few at the expense of the dignity, security, and life of the multitudes. This is nakedly visible when it comes to how black people are treated.  

Anger is important and necessary. The inability to express this anger has led to what we have experienced over the past week and is further proof that something is fundamentally wrong and must change. Our hope is that this anger will not subside until real change happens. Not just in words and sentiments, but in real and concrete reform of institutions. It is the right of citizens to demand this. And when repeated demands go unheeded, it is the duty of citizens to escalate until they are heard, and to ensure that the change that must happen - actually happens.  

Here at the RE!NSTITUTE, we see ourselves as part of an epic struggle: between those who believe in the top-down exercise of power, and those who believe in the power of the people to bring about change for a better future. Equity has always been, and will continue to be, an integral part of our work.    

It is crystal clear to us where we stand from the events underway in the country. We join our voices, our actions, and our minds with the #BlackLivesMatter movement - and the people in the US and elsewhere in the world who are yelling: ‘Enough is ENOUGH’!