A Call for Solidarity & Action

Over the past few weeks, we have collectively born witness to a torrent of violence and loss. From the deadly attacks on Asian communities in California to the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols in Tennessee, the police killing of Sayed Arif Faisal in Cambridge, MA and Tortuguita in Atlanta, GA, the deaths of three young children in Duxbury, and domestic violence related homicides in Cohasset, Stoughton, Lowell, Boston’s South End, and other communities, these tragedies can be hard to comprehend and yet demand of us that we face the brutal reality of the fundamental causes. Access to guns. Inadequate response and resources to address mental health. Police and state violence. Systemic Anti-Blackness.

We know that these are not isolated stories, that they do not account for the vast experiences of interpersonal, societal, and racial violence that occur every day. We also acknowledge that systemic racism dictates which stories are told and how the pain and suffering of those most impacted by state violence are too often minimized and overlooked. We’re also mindful that the ripples of these violences will be experienced most deeply by those closest to the issues.

From the staff at JDI, our hearts go out to the families, communities and everyone impacted. We recognize the pain and continue to strive towards solidarity with those most impacted by violence and harm. And in collaboration with our membership and all of you, we will continue to advocate for sensible gun reform bills, for a shift on our reliance on the criminal legal and carceral systems, and for a continued reckoning with the legacy of Anti-Blackness. 

Much has been written and shared in the aftermath of each of these tragedies. Below, we offer a few resources and reading materials. Let us go forward together, remembering to be kind to ourselves and each other as we take time to process and to seek healing. 

In solidarity,

The JDI Team