Dear SHA Residents and Voucher Participants,
I am writing to you in the midst of demonstrations in Seattle and across our country in reaction to the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. This senseless act spawned the protests but they are a reflection of countless other atrocities and injustices committed recently and over time against black men and other people of color at the hands of law enforcement officers and others.
What we witnessed has invoked a range of emotions that are difficult to sort through. Some of us at SHA have expressed that we feel infuriated, frustrated, depressed, heartbroken, disgusted, numb or tired. The racial tensions that have boiled over in our country in the last few days are not new. The life of a black person was taken by police officers. How many have there been? How many more will there be? How many other acts of murder and hate against people of color?
Racism is pervasive in our country. It permeates interactions in ways large and small. Occasionally, it’s caught on video and leads to the kind of outrage we have seen in the past few days. It was unfortunate that there were a few who took advantage of an eloquent and time-honored approach of demonstrating publicly and demeaned it with violence and chaos. I implore all of us not to let those images be a distraction that distorts the legitimate anger and frustration that people are feeling,
At SHA, we are deeply committed to race and social justice. We work to reinforce those values in all of our programs, and in our engagement as colleagues and with all of you. In light of recent events, we are asking ourselves if there are things we can do to make our efforts even more impactful. The demonstrations are a challenge to us to elevate the necessity to change our institutions so that they are more just. To change our systems so that they do not dehumanize black people and other people of color.
We are having hard conversations as a staff. While these are difficult conversations, I’m confident in the values and sincerity we hold, and in our ability to talk together with both civility and candor. Respect for one another is a hallmark of SHA. Our Race and Social Justice Initiative has helped reinforce our values and advance our understanding. Over the next couple of weeks, we will be stepping up our thinking and talking together.
As our SHA community, I would like to invite you into the conversation. Since we cannot have in-person meetings, I encourage you to share your thoughts on race and social justice by email or mail. To ensure your messages are shared within SHA, please email our Race and Social Justice Initiative Manager Tera Oglesby at tera.oglesby@seattlehousing.org or write to her at Tera Oglesby, Seattle Housing Authority, 190 Queen Anne Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109.
SHA may not be able to change the world, but we can influence our own world. We can raise our voices, with words and actions that show each other and our entire community that we stand tall in the struggle against racism, bias and hate. They have no place here, and we will not be silent or tolerant.
Andrew Lofton,
SHA Executive Director