We Choose Solidarity, Not Division
We Choose Solidarity, Not Division
This statement is neither promoting, endorsing nor opposing any candidate.
Spanish Version In the PDF linked below.
Dear SOMOS Mayfair co-workers, community leaders, partners, and Latinx families,
SOMOS Mayfair is driven by the principles of racial unity, solidarity and economic justice in its mission to uplift the voice and power of our communities. We envision a society where all families are united, where we harness our cultural power to affirm our solidarity, and where we cultivate the resources we need to thrive and nurture the power to decide our own destiny.
It is clear to us that the current systems and institutions in this country are set up to create divisions, as racism, prejudice and white supremacy remain strong pillars upholding the inequality. Our current local election season in Santa Clara County has been filled by racist and classist messages aiming to divide and conquer communities of color.
We have been exposed to divisive messages that pit Latinx, Asian and Black communities against each other. We have seen the use of race-baiting tactics to propagate misinformation in our County; and we have heard the promotion of punitive policies like “catch and release” that jeopardize the lives of working class people of color, especially Black and Latinx youth, which have been intentionally used to feed growing resentment. We have heard how Black leaders have been ignored during this election process and have been pushed to the margins. We have seen mailers that dehumanize Muslim and Latinx males, labeling them as dangerous and unintelligent; vilified characterizations pitted against white communities. We have seen nonprofits become targets and marked as scapegoats for social problems, despite these organizations acting as catalytic forces in sustaining our social safety net before and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. All of this is not the work of just one individual, but a long standing practice of institutional racism attempting to capture power at the expense of our communities.
In the aftermath, those most impacted by social injustice are left behind to pick up the fragments created by racism, misinformation and the legacy of ‘divide and conquer’.
As SOMOS Mayfair, a predominantly Latinx organization, we choose solidarity with our Asian, Muslim and Black, and working class families.
We stand firmly against these harmful and violent actions as they are deeply contrary to the values of our organization, our families, and our movements.
We stand for shifting the narrative away from white supremacy and division and towards the beauty, power and resiliency of our communities.
We stand for using the democratic process to address problems at the root cause, create clarity and push for community-led solutions/policies that address poverty, displacement, and justly redistribute resources.
We stand for promoting a civic culture that unifies Asian, Latino and Black families towards a shared understanding of solidarity and a platform that drives us towards real solutions.
We will continue to educate our staff, leaders and community on the dangers of white supremacy and its legacy tied to colonialism, and we will continue with our responsibility to promote the power of solidarity as a tool for organizing and social change.
We stand firmly rooted in our mission to support children, organize families, and connect neighbors to uplift the dreams, power, and leadership of the community and address systemic inequities.
As we move forward we call on our SOMOS leaders, SOMOS Staff, our allies, our partners and our Latinx community to continue to work towards challenging oppression and all “-isms,” to identify common problems and common solutions across oppressed communities and to continue to fight white supremacy and prejudice with solidarity, collective solutions and collective action.
In solidarity,
Saúl Ramos & Victor Vasquez
And the SOMOS Mayfair Team