Central Ohio Worker Center
2800 S. High Street
Columbus, Ohio 43207
June 6, 2020
Dear Central Ohio Community,
The Central Ohio Worker Center condemns the systemic racism, injustice, and inequality that exists in our communities, in our laws, and in our culture. We join those demonstrating this past week in grief and solidarity. We raise our voices against the police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tyre King, Henry Ford, and too many others known and unknown throughout our nation’s history. Racism plays a destructive role in the lives of working people of color and therefore must be eliminated from our society, if we all are to succeed.
Racism has been used to divide working people of all backgrounds for generations. The struggle against racism is directly linked to the core mission of the Central Ohio Worker Center, which is to advocate on behalf of low-wage and immigrant workers.
We are not a free nation when some of us are concerned that the next interaction with law enforcement could be our last. And none of us are truly free when skin color can determine a person’s income, wealth, access to quality education, loans, and safe and affordable housing. None of us are truly free when every interaction with the justice system, from stops to sentencing, favors white people. None of us are truly free while institutionalized racism affects the funding of schools and community health centers, job opportunities and advancement at work, as well as the chances of being a victim of wage theft. The problem is systemic and demands systemic solutions. COWC supports reforms in policing, a more just and fair country, and will continue the fight for racial and economic equality for all. We must push our cities, our state, and our country to make a deliberate investment in communities of color. However, deliberate investment doesn’t stop with the government. Our workplaces must engage in intentional inclusion practices and work with employees who collectively raise their voices when justice and equity are not present. We must fight to ensure that our immigration policies are devoid of racism and exploitation.
We are fortunate to work with a diverse group of community volunteers who are committed to ensuring that this moment and this movement does not fade away. Real, long-lasting change is needed. Silence and complacency is not and will never be an option. History teaches us that when ordinary people from diverse backgrounds, just like us, join together in the fight for a better society, we can reduce suffering and improve the lives of millions of people. Though it may not be an easy road, it is one that our organization is resolved to travel with you.
In solidarity,
Sarah Ingles
Brittnee Pankey-Qualls
Hannah Halbert
Jessica Vernon-Coleman
Connie Hammond
Boyd McCamish
Simone Morgen
Chris Naegele
Mike Smalz
Ali Smith
Samantha Trueblood
Jon Wentz
Central Ohio Worker Center, Board of Directors