A Statement from our Executive Director

Hello RW Family,
As we continue to navigate through a public health crisis and standing against policy brutality, I can't help but feel called to address an issue that is weighing on my heart and working against the effort to protect Black lives and build a better world for us all.

These past few days, I have not only heard about the violence facing demonstrators and activists by police, but also the news of Black vs. Brown violence happening in our own communities. As a Puerto Rican man, who is married to a Black woman, who leads an organization located in a predominantly black neighborhood, which serves majority Black people, this news is completely counter to everything I stand for as a person and professional. I am part of these communities and they are part of me, and the violence we are seeing between them truly hurts me, but more importantly, it hurts us ALL.

Make no mistake about this my brothers and sisters, this divisiveness we have seen between the Black and Brown community is driven by a more sinister motive. When folks in power pit minority groups against each other, they not only exploit our everything (culture, food, labor, money) for their own gain, but it hurts our efforts to achieve justice and it devastates our own communities. This is what we mean when we speak about systemic racism and oppression; it's a purposeful and tragic system that divides us, gives us crumbs, tells us there is not enough for everyone, and convinces us to fight amongst ourselves. We must come together and collectively say that we are sick and tired of fighting for crumbs and we cannot be divided.

Last night in various communities Pilsen, Little Village, Cicero Humboldt Park there was a sustained effort by Black and Brown leaders to bring together our communities and to end this senseless violence. I want to thank these brave dedicated men and women in the violence prevention space. Most people don't even know about the organizations and churches that work to keep conflicts from escalating and their work tonight was a beacon of hope. I am proud to say that Revolution Workshop works closely with several of these organizations and will continue to do so.

I have spent my entire life fighting for justice and equity for ALL people and will continue to do so, today, tomorrow and always. That is why, I am calling on my fellow Black and Brown leaders to continue work with one another at this critical point in history to spread the message that we will not go back! That as Latinx leaders we will confront long standing racist/anti-Blackness ideology within the Latinx community. That we will fight for justice and equity for Black Lives, that we will fight for justice and equity for Latinx Lives, and that we will not let ANYONE come between our solidarity as we will fight together—not just for crumbs, but for the whole damn pie.

In solidarity,
Manny