YIMBY Action stands with the protestors demanding justice across the country. The murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery, and many others — so many that the simple demand to say their names is now a rallying call for justice — have rocked communities across the country. People are righteously enraged about decades of racism in policing, in healthcare, in housing, in schooling, in every aspect of human life.
Black lives matter. We demand justice. We have a great deal of work to do to change the systems of oppression so that Black people can live without fear of state-sponsored oppression. As an organization, we join the chorus raising their voices against racism and police brutality.
Words are where we start, but they are insufficient. We must end police violence. We must dismantle systems of segregation and oppression. Antiracism must be incorporated into everything we do. As we take action for justice in housing, we must take action for justice in every aspect of our organizing and in every part of our government.
YIMBY Action recognizes our particular responsibility in this fight. We have many white leaders and many white members, and white people must leverage their resources and social capital towards the goal of racial justice. We commit ourselves to embracing humility and learning from allied organizations, and using our platforms and voices to elevate their work. In particular, urbanist circles can be implicitly and explicitly racist, and YIMBY Action recommits to learning, advocating, fighting, and being a partner in the work of antiracism.
YIMBY Action believes communities should be inclusive. We believe we need systemic change to create communities of racial equity, where we eliminate the racial wealth gap and health gap, where all children have access to quality education, and where every single person has safe and stable housing. We commit ourselves to this fight. We have a long way to go.
Signed,
The YIMBY Action Board
Ernest Brown, Board Chair
Laura Foote, Executive Director
Laura Fingal-Surma, Chief Operating Officer
Peter Ambler
Sasha Aikin
Steven Buss
Jeff Fong
Parag Gupta
Jane Natoli
Leora Tanjuatco-Ross
Vincent Woo
