At Diplomatic Language Services, we commit to fighting against racism and know that Black lives matter. Our company is taking time to pause and think about what we can do (collectively and individually) that is actively and intentionally anti-racist.
What have we done?
Over the past few weeks, we have been (and will continue) sharing resources with our audience on social media. We are opening internal discussions and encouraging staff to educate themselves on racism in our country and throughout the world. We are reflecting in teams and alone. The work we need to do is work that we commit to doing.
DLS has donated $2,500 to National Bail Out and NAACP is matching any donation made by our community of up to $2,500. Comprised of abolitionist organizers, lawyers, and activists, National Bail Out seeks to end systems of pretrial detention and mass incarceration. This organization is Black-led and centered. We hope that this contribution will support this cause in a beneficial way. More specifically, our donation will be used to bail out community members, provide supportive services and resource groups who are organizing to transform the criminal justice system. NAACP stands for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. This organization is the largest civil rights organization in the nation. Our donation to the NAACP will go towards ensuring a society in which all individuals have equal rights without discrimination based on race.
What can you do?
If you would like to contribute, there are many actions you can take. For example, two public Google Docs have been created, including links to petitions and resources: find them here and here. Additionally, the Black Lives Matter website is full of useful resources.
Donating money is certainly not the only option. Whether you decide to attend protests, educate yourself, or amplify the voices of black people in your community, there are plenty of ways you can stand with us in the fight against racism.
Two pillars of DLS’s mission is to be an organization that is vibrant and valuable and to make a difference. It should come as no surprise that we celebrate diversity and multi-culturalism at every chance we get. While we can feel good about the diversity instilled within our company’s culture, this is a problem bigger than us. We have been outraged by the events leading up to the state of the world we are in today.
We make the world better when we understand each other. But, how can we expect to understand each other when certain voices are silenced due to the color of their skin?
