By: James Cramer, PhD
In Solidarity
In the aftermath of the senseless killing of George Floyd, Americans and others across the globe have marched in solidarity to protest, not just the loss of yet another innocent Black life, but against persistent and pervasive racism in our country. Unless and until we as a nation confront the reality of how systemic racism is at home in every corner of American life, it will continue to persist and remain a deep moral stain on our society, depriving Black communities of their full potential, and all people of the confidence that they live in a society defined by justice and not its absence.
SFS stands with the protestors. Not only do we raise our collective voice in dissent, but we take this moment to look to the future and examine how we can work in ways large and small to quash the destructive and all too often deadly repercussions of racism in the United States.
The entire SFS community is taking this time to re-evaluate and strengthen our commitment to anti-racism work at all levels within our organization. Systemic racism and its path of oppression is inherently intertwined with conservation and how it has been implemented throughout the globe. We must acknowledge that in order to progress forward as an organization at the intersection of conservation and education, that our programs, offices, daily work, leadership, and our very mission must commit to confronting racism and embracing the challenge of building communities where every person may have opportunity and access, be treated fairly, with dignity, and without discrimination or violence based on race.