The Institute for Teachers of Color (ITOC) stands in solidarity with those who are outraged by our system’s blatant disregard for Black lives. We feel a responsibility to take a formal stance against the anti-black racism that plagues our schools, our justice system, and society. We write to honor Black people that have been brutally and wrongfully murdered: Oscar Grant, Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Renisha McBride, Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, and most recently Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, and so many before, and so many in between. With the justice system’s history of failing to indict White civilians and police on crimes like these, we are reminded of the callous disregard this nation has for People of Color generally, and Black people specifically. This is a country designed to protect property rights over human rights. ITOC is a community of critical, active teachers of color leaders from across the nation. As educators, we have a role in reframing the deficit discourse on how our rightfully angered communities are responding; we must ourselves speak out and challenge racism, while also providing youth the space and language to process oppression in our world. From the classroom to the streets, we aim to support you in your activism towards a more just world. And as a multi-racial community of people of Color, we stand in solidarity to affirm that Black Lives Matter.
Resources from BlackLivesMatter.com
