Grieving Loss + Embodying Solidarity
"...it is tradition to sweep before the new year, to dust off our ancestral altars. it is not tradition to become ancestors before the new year."
- small earth by Shengxiao “Sole” Yu
In the wake of recent violence in Half Moon Bay, Monterey Park, and Memphis I hope you are finding opportunities to collectively grieve and honor the lives of Asian, Latino, and Black community members tragically lost. At NCG we have been sitting with the heaviness of this grief. We extend empathy and solidarity to those who mourn the loss of loved ones and those supporting the injured to heal from these profoundly traumatic acts of violence.
To honor the lives taken, we must understand and disrupt structures that make violence like this the norm. We uplift the leadership of AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) movement groups who have been naming the importance of undoing patriarchy, white supremacy, and carceral systems that make tragedies like these possible. Organizers have named that in the ongoing police violence against Black communities including the recent murder of Tyre Nichols, it is pivotal to move away from ineffective carceral solutions such as increased policing. Let's expand our imagination to transformative solutions that keep us all safe.
As violence against Black, Indigenous, and Asian communities has escalated during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is vital to invest in marginalized communities beyond moments of crises and tragedies. We call on the philanthropic sector to fortify the leadership of historically marginalized BIPOC community members, migrant farm workers, and organizers on the ground building networks of community safety for the long haul.
In philanthropy, we have a responsibility to redistribute resources back to leaders who hold a clear vision for our collective freedom and safety. Well-practiced in collective action, many movement groups have initiated mutual aid funds to support families directly impacted by recent violence. We call on you to review the resources below, follow the leadership of movement groups, and practice embodied solidarity. May we all embody compassion and grace with ourselves and each other during this time.
Mutual Aid
- Half Moon Bay Farmworker Shooting & Flood Victims
- Half Moon Bay Victims Fund
- Tyre Nichols Memorial Fund
- Collective Safety Aid Options for Asian Movement Organizing
- Monterey Park Mutual Aid Options
Philanthropic Funds
- ALAS Half Moon Bay Strong Fund
- Asian Pacific Fund: Half Moon Bay Support Fund
- Silicon Valley Community Foundation Emergency and Disaster Relief Fund
- Asian Law Caucus: Bay Area Latinx and Asian Community Groups Unite to Support Half Moon Bay Victims and Survivors
Resources for Discussion and Action
- Borealis Philanthropy: Policing, Criminalization, and Surveillance of Protesters of State Violence
- AAPIP: 11 Ways Forward This Lunar New Year
- 18 Million Rising: Let's Talk About It
- Latino Community Foundation + Asian Pacific Fund: Our Unified Commitment to Half Moon Bay
- East Bay Community Foundation: Ending Violence in Asian American Communities
- San Francisco Foundation: Acting Together to End Gun Violence
Statement in Response to Governor Newsom’s Plan re: San Quentin State Prison “Rehabilitation Center”
The California Criminal Justice Funders Group (CCJFG) is an established network of funders and donors that invest in a wide range of system change. We firmly believe that efforts to transform this country’s response to safety, justice, and accountability must be led by those individuals who have been directly impacted by systems of punishment themselves.
Reflection on Black Futures, Black Freedom, and Democracy
