Racial Justice Resources
Since the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor early in 2020, protests and demonstrations have take shape across the country and around the world as people of all backgrounds rise above their fears of the COVID pandemic to address the racism pandemic infecting our nation.
As the office that oversees religious, spiritual, and ethical programming on campus, the Office of Spirituality and Meaning-Making is outraged by the unjust and inhumane treatment not only of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, but of so many Black bodies. Together with many in our religious and ethical communities at Cornell, we grieve alongside victims of violence and their families. We mourn for those who are marginalized because of their minoritized identities. We lament the silence and ignorance from so many who remain unaware of their power and privilege and thereby perpetuate structures of racial injustice. We echo the cry of the psalmist, “How long?” (Ps. 13). We unequivocally believe that Black Lives Matter.
While statements such as these break the silence, they do not prevent violence. This moment—as with so many painful moments before it—calls us to action. Though the world’s great religious and philosophical traditions vary in their beliefs and practices, they share a common call to cultivate consciences and to work together to create a more just and compassionate world. The author Isabel Wilkerson has rightly noted that "This moment we’re in is not just a social crisis and not just a political crisis. It’s a spiritual crisis." OSMM and CURW are committed to supporting all those who desire to work at the intersection of spirituality and social justice in order to cultivate antiracist actions and attitudes.