Building Bridges, Not Walls

Class Action was founded by visionaries who realized that they had grown up at different ends of the class spectrum, but who had arrived in the same place when it came to their passion for advancing social equity and justice. Their commitment to building bridges across differences – instead of building walls – continues to inform all that we do today.

So, like many of you we have been deeply concerned about the election of a presidential candidate that denigrated and threatened women; religious, ethnic and racial populations; members of the LGBTQ community; and anyone not in the alt-right power elite. We understand that Make America Great Again is code for returning to an earlier time in our nation’s history when vulnerable populations were invisible. They were expected to “be seen and not heard” – and certainly not expected to lead.

Give Him a Chance?!

While “Give him a chance” has become the mantra of those in powerful positions, President-elect Donald Trump has done nothing to show that he is deserving of one. He has named Steve Bannon, the man who was a key player in Trump’s Electoral College win and considered by many as a leader in the alt right movement, to the position of chief strategist and senior counselor. And with revisionist fervor to calm the waters about the appointment, Trump now claims his son-in-law was the chief campaign strategist.

President-elect Trump also wants a man friendly with white supremacists and opposed to moderate civil rights groups like the NAACP for his attorney general. And Mr. Trump’s for National Security Adviser, retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, has called “Islamism a vicious cancer inside the body of 1.7 billion people” that has to be “excised.” Further, the president-elect suggests that peaceful protest should be outlawed and anyone exercising their First Amendment (vs. his beloved Second Amendment) rights should be jailed or lose their citizenship – all as he continues to Tweet pre-election rhetoric that pits communities against each other. 

Not an Inch

We will not give him an inch.

As people working to bring different classes, communities and races together, Class Action board members, supporters and staff will be watching the new administration closely. We will stand together for civil liberties and social justice. We will stand with immigrants, targeted religious groups people of color, young women and members of the LGBTQ community. The work of building community is transformative.

We will work with the new administration if it wants to work with us on issues of fairness and tolerance – on bridging differences from class to race to marrying ideology in ways that support all communities. But we will only support efforts that move our country forward in ways that reflect our own work to help communities move closer together.