Action Canada joins in solidarity to say #BlackLivesMatter

The violent killing of George Floyd at the hands of the police in Minneapolis, alongside the recent murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and Breonna Taylor have been brutal reminders of the pervasiveness of anti-Black racism.

People everywhere are joining together to share grief, rage, and pain to say “enough is enough”. Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights joins in solidarity with communities across Canada and the world to say #BlackLivesMatter. We share the deep sadness, outrage, and anger felt by millions.

This systemic violence and racism does not just occur in the United States. Canada is a country built on colonial violence and white supremacy -- and we can see the impacts every day. We see it in the killings by police of Black, Indigenous, and other people of colour, including Regis Korchinski-Paquet, Jason Collins, Eishia Hudson, and D’Andre Campbell. We see it in the state surveillance borne by Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities. We see it in how anti-Blackness and racism impact health outcomes and shape the experiences of racialized people as they seek out care within institutions built on a legacy of white supremacy. We see it when Black people -- particularly Black women -- are disproportionately working on the frontlines and dying from COVID-19.

Reproductive justice is the ability of all people to live and raise our children in safe and sustainable communities -- we owe this understanding to Black luminaries, from Loretta Ross to Kimberley Crenshaw, Robyn Maynard, and Tamika Mallory to only name a few. All people have the right to live free from violence, discrimination, and coercion. Sexual and reproductive rights intersect with and mutually support the right to live free of racism and discrimination.

As we work to create a world where everyone can realize their right to sexual and reproductive health, we must look inward and do our own work to dismantle white supremacy within our organization and in our sector. We are committed to addressing and challenging multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and to working with groups, communities, and movements that are oppressed or have been historically discriminated against.