Joint Statement on Kellogg Foundation Racial Equity Commission Launch
The 12 W. K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) "Anchor Institutions," applaud the Foundation's launch of the Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) commission. The WKKF “America Healing Racial Equity Anchor Collaborative" is a unique partnership of 12 leading national organizations all dedicated to racial equity and racial healing. As coalition members in the TRHT process, we express our individual and collective support of moving to action and creating comprehensive initiatives on racial healing. Each Anchor institution responds to the launch, below.
The time is now for a Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Commission, and Demos is proud to be a part of this effort by the W.K.Kellogg Foundation and many others.
Advancement Project
“Our nation is hungry for progress on race, but we cannot possibly move forward in a constructive way without first grappling with our past,” said Advancement Project Co-Director Judith Browne Dianis. “It is in the looking back that we understand how to heal our future. I am excited about this journey.”
Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF)
“As a partner and advocate for racial healing and equity, we look towards a better America that is rooted in truth about who we are as a nation and who we want to be,” said Kathy Ko Chin, President and CEO of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum. “We are honored to join the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and partners in the Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation enterprise as we strive together to transform our nation into one that is truly inclusive of our rich diversity and that eliminates inequities across the spectrum.”
Demos
“Our country’s greatest asset is the diversity of its people, and yet we have never truly come to terms with how racism shapes our society, both historically and today. The time is now for a Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Commission, and Demos is proud to be a part of this effort by the W.K.Kellogg Foundation and many others,” said Heather McGhee, Demos President.
Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society
“We must have real conversations that allow us to examine the deep racial anxiety in this country, an anxiety not only stoked by political manipulation, but by fear of rapidly changing demographics, and a rapidly changing world. The new Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation project is an important collaborative process by which we can develop new narratives that help move us past a false divide between ourselves and a racial ‘Other.’ The Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society is proud to join this effort,” said john a. powell, Director of the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
“Our nation cannot truly correct the longstanding oppressions caused by centuries of enslavement, terrorism, economic and social ostracism until we accept and acknowledge the damage it has caused,” said Cornell William Brooks, president and CEO of the NAACP. “We hope this effort will help more people see the scars that racism has inflicted in our homes, neighborhoods and communities, and to confront the casual indifference that has denied opportunities for quality education, economic prosperity, and civil rights across this country to generations.”
National Congress of American Indians (NCAI)
“NCAI is humbled to partner with Kellogg and social empowerment organizations across the U.S. to launch a national movement similar to the Truth and Reconciliation effort between Canada and that country's Indigenous peoples. With new insights and a shared commitment to healing communities, together we will forge a unified vision for America that respects our diversity and provides hope and opportunity to our youth and future generations,” said Jacqueline Pata, Executive Director of NCAI.
National Council of La Raza (NCLR)
“Every American has an interest in making sure that our country forthrightly addresses what one Nobel Prize winner famously called the ‘American Dilemma’ of race. Viewing the question of race from the twin perspectives of ‘truth’ and ‘healing’ is a uniquely visionary, inclusive approach, and NCLR is honored to join the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and our other partners in this effort,” said Janet Murguia, NCLR President.
National Urban League (NUL)
“The TRHT is a potentially transformative initiative that will not only put racial disparity at the forefront of the nation's consciousness, but also examine the structural inequities and societal attitudes that underlie them. Too often, incidents of police brutality, voter suppression or educational failures are presented in isolation, but they must be understood within the context of history and the nation's social hierarchy. Most importantly, the TRHT creates a process for mobilizing communities to create solutions,” said Marc Morial, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Urban League.
National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA)
"The time has come for our nation to confront hard truths—that its centuries of unequal treatment of Americans based on race has created deep structural injustices today—and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation enterprise will move us beyond dialogue, to break down these walls and barriers—intentional or unconscious—within and between our communities. The result will be transformative: a more perfect union that benefits all Americans,” said Christopher Kang, National Director of National Council of Asian Pacific Americans.
People Improving Communities through Organizing (PICO)
“A generation ago we were encouraged that the moral arc of the universe was long but bends inevitably towards justice. That arc is overhead and it’s bending now! We at the PICO National Network along with the hundreds of thousands of faith leaders across the country celebrate with the W. K. Kellogg Foundation on the launch of this historic initiative—Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation to confront the false hierarchy of human value and unlock the healing power of our nation,” said Scott Reed, Executive Director of the PICO National Network.
Poverty & Race Research Action Council (PRRAC)
“This is a crucial opportunity for communities to come together for honest conversations about their shared history,” said Philip Tegeler of the Poverty & Race Research Action Council. “It is especially important to confront the legacy of segregation, and the harms that come from separate and unequal neighborhoods, schools, and communities. We hope that real change will begin to emerge from these difficult but essential discussions.”
Race Forward
"Our mission at Race Forward is to build awareness, solutions, and leadership for racial justice," said Rinku Sen, Executive Director. "The Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) commission launched by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and its partner organizations is an important step towards identifying such solutions. We are happy to support this initiative as it is consistent with our work to ensure the systematic fair treatment, with equitable opportunities and outcomes for people of all races."
###
