The UMass Theatre Guild would like to express our sadness and anger towards the violent acts of police brutality resulting in the murders of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and countless other black people and people of color. We recognize and condemn systemic racism, racially-motivated acts of violence, and racist bias that has put black lives at risk. We acknowledge that BIPOC lives are constantly affected by a broken system. We want to see an end to this in our organization and across the nation. All lives cannot matter until black lives matter. The UMTG is focused on making theatre an inclusive space and are inspired by the voices in our community to make a change. We are better educating ourselves on making the UMTG an anti-racist organization and hold our members to a standard of fostering inclusivity, diversity, and positivity. One of the ways to combat racism is by learning and teaching others how to unlearn implicit racial conditioning. Listen to Black voices very carefully, let the Black community lead conversations and challenge your community on why “All Lives Matter” is harmful. We encourage you to demand justice for those killed by police, support Black-owned businesses, read plays and books by Black playwrights and watch content produced by Black directors. Below is a list of resources that aid in the fight for equality. The UMTG is also selling merchandise on RedBubble and all profits will be donated to The Black Visions Collective. The following resources can be accessed below.
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