MCA Stands in Solidarity with Black Lives Matter
June 3, 2020
The Maine Children’s Alliance stands in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and the protests against police brutality and institutional racism. We recognize that it is impossible to meet our mission to promote policies and practices so that all Maine children and families thrive, when racist systems deny opportunity for Black people in our communities.
We believe all of Maine’s children have the same right to grow up in communities of love and acceptance, that foster their growth and prosperity. There is no simple, quick fix to the deeply rooted racism embedded in our systems and institutions, but we are committed to working alongside people of color in our state to dismantle and transform those inequitable systems.
Through the policy, data, and advocacy work that we do, MCA is committed to exposing and acting on the disparities facing children and families of color in our state. We acknowledge that racism attacks every part of our society, creating inequalities in education, health, criminal justice, and employment. This deprives children and families of color the equal opportunity to achieve health, safety and prosperity.
We hope you will join us in the work to effect change right now. What each of us does will look different, but every anti-racist action is important. Listen to the lived experiences of Black people. Join a protest, or support them from home. Fill out your census. Call your local and state representatives and tell them how much this issue matters to you. Register, and then vote to elect leaders who will work to eliminate laws and policies that perpetuate racism. And perhaps most importantly, talk to your children and families about how systemic racism hurts us all, and how each of us can be a part of changing those systems for the better.
These protests are a visible and visceral symptom that the disease of systemic and historic racism can no longer be ignored. It is only through focused, long-term engagement at all levels of our society, that we can hope to root out racism and transform systems to truly give every child the opportunity to reach their full potential. We are more deeply committed than ever to the cause of racial justice. Now it’s time to act.