After the murder of George Floyd one year ago, NYU McSilver spoke up to say “Black lives matter, and we join people across the nation to demand policies and practices reflecting the fact that they do matter.” That still holds true today, and though we see progress toward reform, that progress remains slow. We must continue to speak up for policing reform, voting protections, resources to address both the physical and mental health impacts of racism and for policies that address the racial inequities in our society that the pandemic only widened.
We recognize too that in our fractured times that Asian Americans, Jewish people, Muslims and members of the LGBTQ community are being targeted out of hate; and that people who are Latinx, Native American and immigrants are under pressure as well. We stand up for all of them and will continue to push for collective action and policies that protect their wellbeing.