January 27, 2021 | By: Akonadi Foundation
We applaud President Biden’s recent decision to prioritize racial equity as one of the new administration’s first actions on Day One. The Executive Order launching a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all is a welcome change, one that signals a brand new day for our country after the past four years. The President’s Executive Order will usher in essential changes across government, from housing to health to access to higher education. We agree with the declaration that, “affirmatively advancing equity, civil rights, racial justice, and equal opportunity is the responsibility of the whole of our Government.”
We thank the organizers and leaders who have pushed the nation forward on this and so many other issues, igniting a racial justice uprising in 2020 and a continued and growing movement for justice. We applaud their unending courage and recognize this important victory as theirs.
We know the journey to racial equity is a marathon and not a sprint. The arc toward racial justice is long. Dismantling systemic inequality will take all of us, and change can only happen through sustained action and a deep and unyielding commitment to justice. There is much work to be done, and this Executive Order is an important step in the right direction, one we hope will galvanize much-needed transformation across systems. We look forward to continuing to follow the lead of our grant partners and community visionaries who are leading us toward collective liberation.