be_ixf;ym_202403 d_29; ct_50 YES! I want to make a difference TODAY!

Our work toward being an Anti-Racist Organization

I feel it must be said again, we are making a commitment – City Year aspires to be an anti-racist organization. We will work inside and out to be co-conspirators with our Black and African American staff, AmeriCorps members, students, and school partners to prevent racism because we know there is no equity in education without racial justice.

The work we are doing is deliberate with a focus on listening and learning. As an organization, we will broaden the work of our affinity groups and work to better understand the narratives we perpetuate and need to change. We will use asset-based language to positively shift those narratives when talking about our work and the aspiring students we serve. We may feel challenged at times, but I commit to our staff and Corps of color, that we will lean into the challenge and do our part to create a reality that no longer fosters white privilege, but addresses both individual discrimination and systemic racism. Sharing this with you, our donors and champions is one of the many ways I am holding our site accountable. I will be sharing quarterly updates here and in our eNewsletter on our continued work on Diversity, Belonging, Inclusion, and Equity.

As City Year CEO Jim Balfanz (Boston ’94) said in a statement in support of Black Lives Matter, “We stand with Black staff, AmeriCorps members, partners, community leaders, and the students we support in schools across the country and their families, to demand justice for the Black people killed by brutal police action. We oppose racist policies and everyday racist practices and actions—all of which are propped up and sustained by centuries of anti-Blackness and racist beliefs—that oppress and silence Black people.” READ MORE

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