Sometimes we require searing events to shake us out of complacency. In one of the whitest states in the nation, it can be easier to forget that racism exists. Yet people of color here and all over the country experience it in lesser and greater ways every day of their lives.
We have been deeply shaken over the past several weeks. As a company and as individuals, we are looking inward, examining our implicit biases, and our own history within the tapestry of institutionalized oppression and systemic racism. This is not an easy time, but we strive to accept the discomfort so that we may effect real change.
Businesses are a critical part of the fabric of any community. Businesses are where employees spend most of their waking hours, where policies are enacted, and where economics become reality. People + policy + structures: these set the stage for so much of what happens in our lives. Sometimes for good, sometimes for bad. Businesses can foster innovation, progress, and also oppression in our country and in our communities.
We are committed to bettering ourselves and our business so that we can help our communities progress toward a more inclusive and anti-racist future. We hope our colleagues are doing the same and taking time to reflect and lead by example.
June 16, 2020