“As we spend the month celebrating Black history and Black people, we are excited to leverage our channels to tell the stories of individual Black leaders whose work lies at the heart of the criminal justice reform and immigration reform movements of today -
work that is so critical because of the way these systems disproportionately harm Black people at each and every level."
As FWD.us works toward our mission to end mass incarceration and to build a humane and sustainable immigration system, Black History Month is a much welcome opportunity to learn from and uplift the too frequently marginalized contributions of Black people and Black leaders in the fight for freedom and justice. Black people have long been at the center of the efforts to challenge this country to live up to its promises of democracy and equality, even as the community is so frequently denied equal access to these ideals.
Our I Stand with Immigrants Initiative will be building on its Stories of Blackness project by telling the stories of Black immigrants, and shining a spotlight on immigration organizations that serve Black immigrants such as African Communities Together.
Sadly, we enter this Black History Month with a painful reminder of the human cost of our existing criminal justice system and how the violence of that system is disproportionately borne by Black people. As we stand in solidarity with those grieving the life of Tyre Nichols and fighting to build a country where he and all Black people can live and thrive, we recommit to the urgent work of reducing jail and prison populations, expanding opportunities for communities that have long been robbed of them, and creating a safer, more just America for everyone.