Many individuals who use Emerge’s services are also part of communities where their experiences of abuse are also embedded in daily struggles to be valued as human beings.
We believe that humanizing the experience of all people shouldn’t be a radical act, but a basic standard for all people who seek our services and the services of any organization or institution in our community.
The killing of George Floyd reminds us of how violence against the Black Community is embedded in a history of anti-blackness in our society. This permeates our everyday lives and consequently permeates our work as a service provider. We must acknowledge that the root causes of domestic abuse are embedded in multiple, intersecting systemic oppressions, like anti-blackness, sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, classism/poverty, able-ism, and anti-immigrant sentiment (xenophobia) – even when that includes facing and acknowledging our own harmful beliefs and behaviors.
Emerge Center Against Domestic Abuse has been in an organizational process of transforming philosophy and practice to be a part of building systems and spaces that acknowledge the humanity and worth of every human being in our community. We extend our condolences to the family of George Floyd, the community of Minneapolis, and the many other families and communities that have been harmed by the fierce loyalty to belief systems that support violence and the dehumanization of Black people.