Following the recent mass shootings in Gilroy, El Paso, and Dayton, CAA Co-Executive Directors send the below message to CAA supporters and stakeholders:
“Once again we mourn. Once again we are not surprised.
We mourn because we are pained by the loss of precious life. We mourn because the terrible suffering affects so many and for generations. We mourn because sometimes the anguish hits close to home. We mourn because with more than 250 mass shootings in the U.S. this year alone, tragedy is never far away.
We are not surprised because common denominators repeat: white supremacy, toxic masculinity, and easy access to firearms. We are not surprised because anti-immigrant manifestos are part and parcel of the political strategies that scapegoat immigrants.
We are not surprised because these are the logical consequences to “Go back to where you came from!”, “Send her back!”, “An invasion of our country!”, “Shoot them!”. We are not surprised because this is what happens when a weaponized society careens toward unchecked bigotry and hate.
Though the scourge of white supremacy and nationalism is not new, today it is being encouraged by rhetoric from the highest office in the land. Today its worst manifestations are exacerbated by policies that neither prioritize our well-being nor protect our civil rights.
May these troubling times give us moral clarity to see what we are up against, end the fear-based politics of scapegoating and white supremacy, and stop the myriad of ways in which they are used to harm us.”
