Literacy for Environmental Justice stands in solidarity with those demanding justice for the atrocious crimes against members of the Black community.
It will take commitment from us all to do the work, to educate ourselves, to speak up, to fight racism in all its forms. We are committed to working with our community, partners, and legislators to do and be better. As an environmental justice organization that has worked in Bayview Hunters Point for over 20 years, we believe in fostering systemic change that protects and gives opportunities to future generations.
By directly addressing the legacies of environmental racism perpetrated against our community and like communities across the country, we seek to cultivate connection, honor the power of interdependence and nurture the skills and hope necessary to create a future in which Black lives are seen as having value, one in which all are treated with the human dignity they rightfully deserve.
Black Lives Matter. Black Futures Matter. Black experiences in the Outdoors Matter. From the brutal murder of Ahmaud Arbery, to the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, to Christian Cooper being threatened while birdwatching in Central Park, these are the latest injustices in a long history of dehumanization and institutional violence directed against Black communities. The persistent nature of these events is appalling. The patterns illuminate the deeply ingrained inequities that scar our nation and the work ahead we must all commit ourselves to help heal and repair our beautiful and broken society.
We all have a role to play in working toward a more just world, in Bayview Hunters Point, San Francisco and beyond. As an organization, LEJ pledges to continue our advocacy for access and equity in our green space, and to advance policies that keep those spaces safe and welcoming to all. We are not only committed to maintaining programming that increases access for Communities of Color to parks, but also to fostering community, such that our parks can be utilized without fear of violation or rebuke. None of our work in support of access and equity in San Francisco’s green spaces matters if our community cannot feel safe outdoors.
We are with those demanding justice for black communities, indigenous communities, and all other Communities of Color that are environmentally and economically stressed, and we remain vigorously committed to do more to combat racism in all its forms.