Yesterday’s shocking acts of insurgency, visions of extremists looting, rioting and overtaking the Capitol Building were disturbing and saddening. This was a dark day in our history. As we witnessed what happened yesterday, the entire Executive Leadership Team [ELT] was struck, like many, by the stark contrast in law enforcement presence compared to what we all witnessed during the protest in the spring and summer of 2020.
Juxtapose yesterday with what occurred all too frequently this past spring and summer with the Black Lives Matter demonstrations. Over and over again, the ready and aggressive deployment of the National Guard and law enforcement for scheduled and sanctioned Black Lives Matter protests stands as a stark contrast to what transpired yesterday. In the summer, the President deployed special forces in target cities and made clear that criminal penalties would be levied for the destruction of public property. Yet, no such actions were taken during the events of yesterday, even though the aggressive and lawless intent of the rioters yesterday was previously made clear.
It is obvious to the ELT that injustice, racism and racial bias were central factors in the contrasting decisions to deploy law enforcement. Yesterday’s events serve as a troubling reminder that the fight for equality is never ending and is present all around us. This is an outrage and we hope that you are outraged, too.
As we have said before, we must do better and we can do better to call out injustices when we see them and work tirelessly to eradicate racism in our community, We must remain committed to holding ourselves accountable and strive to listen and learn, to observe our world and engage in whatever actions we can to eliminate racism. By remaining committed to this fight, it is our hope that we can continue to model the world we want for our families and for the individuals we serve.
As we continue to provide safety, stability, care and hope for our clients, we believe it is important for our team members to take care of themselves and reach out to one another to provide support.
In service,
Sound Executive Leadership