SOMeCA Statement in solidarity with Black Lives Matter

We are grieving, demonstrating, reflecting, and reckoning. Individually we are in active support of the demonstrations and actions happening across the country calling for justice. Collectively we are holding dialogues to hear our many voices and share ways to take action. This statement of solidarity is in process because this is just the beginning. 

SOMeCA stands in deep mourning for all who Black people who have faced state-sanctioned racist violence. Witnessing these murders changes each of us and calls us to take action.

Students, staff, and alumni of SOMeCA have experienced and fought against racism in all of its forms for decades. Today we renew and redouble our commitment to fight for justice and a better world and to stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement which is on the forefront of this fight, standing for a “world free of anti-Blackness, where every Black person has the social, economic, and political power to thrive.”

We do not make this commitment lightly. Systemic racism can only be eradicated by true systemic change. We seek reforms and the transformative change necessary for a world free of anti-Blackness. We seek compassion, care and love for justice within our communities. Our commitment requires us to step up and stay engaged until the work is done and no one is left behind.

SOMeCA is a community of many different organizations and individuals. We are national, intergenerational, and multiracial, united by core values that ground our commitment to social justice. Based on these values we commit ourselves:

• To honor the leadership of the Black Lives Matter movement in the fight for freedom, liberation, and justice.
• To be in solidarity with and learn from the Black Lives Matter movement. To question what we have been taught and to actively educate ourselves and others about Black struggles.
• To be compassionate with ourselves and others while challenging ourselves to push forward in this historic moment.
• To be accountable in order to do that which requires discomfort, sacrifice, and the transformation of our lives.
• To work collectively to develop a multitude of ways to creatively and effectively contribute to creating a campus and a world free of anti-Blackness.