Indigenous Sovereignty and Black Liberation Matters, Not Black Friday
As we approach our annual Not Black Friday we are looking forward to partnering with Mother’s Bistro to provide community meals. Previous years we’ve been able to feed hundreds of people on site throughout the city, but due to COVID it will look vastly different. We are extremely grateful and overwhelmed with the support of the community who are volunteering to make this happen. Please reach out to
with NOT BLACK FRIDAY in your subject if you’d like to volunteer or request delivery meals! We are hoping to make this the biggest one yet - meals will be going out every Friday through January.
We were recently notified of the actions of past president Ms. Maria Garcia as it relates to
to prevent the distribution of much needed funds to specifically the Black Community in Oregon. Ms. Garcia has noted her past connection to Don't Shoot Portland in announcing this anti-Black action and that we are compelled to respond. We condemn in the strongest way this lawsuit and the anti Blackness it perpetuates. To draw upon a past relationship with this organization to justify anti-Blackness is simply a further demonstration of that sentiment. We also condemn the divisive tactics of The Oregonian, who opted to use a dated image of Don’t Shoot Portland in order to drive their white supremacy narrative and mislead the public. These are disgusting and abhorrent acts and we must divest from those who wish to pander anti-Blackness.
We also must address the recent ‘kill list’ that was written containing the name of our founder, Teressa Raiford. We absolutely take death threats seriously and it is imperative to inform our networks to maintain awareness of their own surroundings and safety.
This kill list has been reported by those who physically received the letter to the FBI. We advise anyone who has information on this and other hate crimes to contact the
- we don’t need the systems we seek to abolish. SPLC are the best investigative body for these matters - learn more about them
.
We will leave you with these words by
:
“Thanksgiving is a celebration of white supremacy. It is necessary to maintain the fantasy that is settler colonialism by gaslighting those whose lands you unjustly occupy. This so-called country is based on three things: the genocide of Indigenous peopple for our lands, the enslavement of Black people to build on that land, and the erasure of both of those histories to gaslight us into assimilation. To eat Indigenous sacred foods while we starve and die is not honorable. To eat a turkey, a revered animal and kin, with no respect to their part in our world is appalling. To eat squash, potatoes, pumpkin, cranberries, beans, etc while Indigenous people often do not have access to those foods is unjust. What is there to celebrate?”