Breonna Taylor deserved better.* Our Black team members, board members, program participants, alumni, neighbors, friends, and the entire Black community deserve better. Regardless of your views on what the Kentucky Grand Jury heard and decided, racism is not a partisan issue, but a fundamental threat to a thriving democracy.
We denounce the systemic racism and violence inflicted upon Black lives.
Coro training focuses on asking hard questions of other people and of ourselves, on interrogating and analyzing the systems we interact with on a daily basis, and on tackling society’s biggest challenges together. This work cannot be done without addressing the destructive force of systemic racism. Systemic racism impacts each of us as individuals, as well as our institutions, organizations, and companies. It is at the root of our biggest challenges. Without concerted attention and action, we will continue to devalue human life and put our democracy at grave risk.
Coro continues to improve and strengthen how we bring an equity lens to our programs by creating a sense of psychological safety for participants to ask questions, contribute, take risks, lean into discomfort, grow in self-awareness, and exercise leadership within diverse cohorts. Inclusion and awareness of power dynamics are critical leadership competencies in the 21st century.
Today, we remind our network of the urgency of putting Coro tools of inquiry, systems analysis, and collaboration into action to continually shift our own behavior and awareness, shape anti-racist policies, and interrogate and evolve systems. With our grief comes an opportunity for greater awareness and greater action. We all have an obligation to roll up our sleeves, have difficult conversations, and tackle our biggest challenges, together — in service of creating a more just and equitable society, and a thriving democracy, for everyone.
*Acknowledging the writings of Felicia Martinez and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey for inspiring the framing of our statement.
We are committed to growing our anti-racism practices as an organization and network and we look forward to engaging you in this work with us in the coming months.. We hope you’ll share your thoughts and comments with us via Coro Connect or via email to coro@coronorcal.org.
Photo Credit: Family of Breonna Taylor, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images.