Tonight, as most of us sit safe in our homes, we struggle to find the words to understand what is happening in the world around us. We struggle to convey our sorrow for the lives tragically and wrongfully taken; we struggle to communicate our sorrow for their families; and we struggle to convey our outrage at the blatant acts of racism occurring in our country, and our utter disappointment for the contempt and indifference of our leaders.

“We cannot hold a torch to light another’s path without brightening our own.” These are powerful words spoken by Hispanic leader Cesar Chavez. We must follow his example. We cannot fight racism and injustice without understanding the struggles of the black community, and until we open our eyes to the reality that they have been fighting every day, we will continue to contribute to such injustice. To stand silently by as injustice occurs is to contribute to the destruction of justice for all. By allowing this vulgar display of violent racism to continue we are contributing to it’s rot.

LLSA will not stand idly by. We will use our platform and our voices to stand up for justice and for our fellow black student community. LLSA stands in support of BLSA. We say loudly and clearly that we are a safe community for any member of the Penn State family and that you will always have an ally in us. Racism will not be tolerated. Every life is valued. We are not colorblind. We see every color and each color is unique, valued, and beautiful.

“It’s up to all of us – Black, white, everyone – no matter how well-meaning we think we might be, to the honest, uncomfortable work of rooting [racism] out.” – Michelle Obama

Penn State LLSA E-Board

There are resources available 

• To donate to an important cause or sign a petition: homehttps://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/;  https://minnesotafreedomfund.org/donate; https://www.reclaimtheblock.org/
• If you want to protest, know your rights: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/protesters-rights/
• If you have issues with “looting” and recent protests: Activist Tamika Mallory’s speech during a George Floyd Rally in Minneapolis, https://youtu.be/2wxAhGhHZMI ; Poet Steven Willis, “How the Hood Loves You Back” https://youtu.be/NJXraKM94EE; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Op-ed for the Los Angeles Times, “Don’t understand the protests? What you’re seeing is people pushed to the edge”
  https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-05-30/dont-understand-the-protests-what-youre-seeing-is-people-pushed-to-the-edge
• Mental health resources: https://blackmentalhealth.com/ ; https://therapyforblackgirls.com/ ;
  CAPS- (814) 863-0395, M-F from 8 AM-5 PM EST.
• Suggested films: When They See Us, American Son, 13th, Fruitvale Station
• Suggested books: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander, White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin Diangelo, PhD, Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson