In appreciation for Black women, we’re asking you to be loud with your love this year and give to Color of Change in the name of a Black woman whose presence has moved you to support the fight to get free.
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Dear friend,
2018 has been both exciting and hard for many Black women, including the bold leaders here at Color Of Change. Color Of Change is fueled mostly by Black women who work tirelessly to make the world better for our people. Black women have had wonderful wins this year, we’ve watched Maxine Waters so fearlessly stand up to Trump and we fought to have Jacqueline Dixon’s charges dropped after she was arrested for defending herself against her abusive partner--and won.
Unfortunately as the year ends, we are reminded that the struggle continues, with Cyntoia Brown still in prison for having the courage to kill her sexual assaulter and 23 year-old mother Jazmine Hadley being violently arrested in a Brooklyn food stamp office while her baby was taken from her by NYPD officers. We’ve come so far this year and there’s still so much work to do, but we wanted to ask that you take the time and acknowledge the Black women that inspire you to keep going.
Maybe it’s a family member that raised you, or a close friend that brings you life; a teacher who helped expand the way you see the world, or a young girl whose future possibilities you’d like to expand in turn. Whoever it might be, think of them when you donate to our movement and most importantly, let them know what they mean to you and how their presence inspires you to support our work at Color of Change.
At Color of Change we push to center Black women in our work everyday--and your donation will help us continue this work. We’re propelled by the women who have come before us, strategizing and organizing for Black liberation while simultaneously serving as the core of their families and their communities. We recognize how the lives of Black women are touched by almost every issue we campaign for-- whether it’s ending money bail, eliminating mass incarceration, or fighting for the decriminalization of survivors of sexual abuse. Even when the mainstream media tries to render Black women’s lives invisible we choose to not just see them but center them. That is what has made our movement so powerful and so successful in winning meaningful campaigns all throughout 2018. Here are just a few ways we’ve been able to make a big impact by centering the lives of Black women:
- This summer, we helped get a bill passed that makes phone calls to New York City jails free. Payments to correctional facilities, like phone call fees, drain millions of dollars from the largely low-income and predominantly Black communities that are most impacted by mass incarceration. Being able to make free phone calls to New York City jails will have a huge impact on the Black women who have been forced to pay just to keep in contact with their incarcerated loved one.
- As a part of the National Bailout Collective, we helped free over 100 Black mamas detained pretrial during the second annual Mama’s Day Bailout.
- We successfully pushed Selma, Alabama district attorney Michael W. Jackson to drop the charges against Jacqueline Dixon when she was arrested for defending herself against her abusive husband.
- We helped get Latice Fisher in Starkville, Mississippi released from jail where she was held on murder charges due to the outcome of her home pregnancy.
Will you donate $4 today to honor a Black woman in your life that you love, that inspires you, and that makes you hopeful for the future?
We’re fueled by the Black women on our staff, like Kristen who started the campaign this year that made all phone calls free from New York City jails. Another campaign manager, Anay worked tirelessly to bring Latice Fisher home; and Tamar our research manager provides invaluable data to our team allowing us to run and win the most strategic campaigns.
The potential that we have to create a world that feels free and safe and filled with Black joy expands when we keep our movement strong-- and that movement is often driven by the love and labor of Black women. While it seems that all of that should go without saying, too often we silently stand in awe of Black women without openly acknowledging them.
Your donation to Color Of Change will tell the Black women in your life that you see and appreciate them and that you’re willing to give what you can to help fight for the future that they deserve, and that we all deserve.
Until justice is real,
Clarise, Arisha, Kristen, Tamar, Anay, Marena, Marybeth, Madison and the rest of the Color Of Change team
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Help keep our movement strong.
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