We write to you with heavy hearts. Words are inadequate to capture the loss, despair, and anger so many of us are feeling following the senseless and tragic death of George Floyd. Our Twin Cities community and the nation are mourning, and we grieve for him and his family. May he rest in power.

George Floyd’s death happened in our community and, for some of us, close to our homes. When we step outside we can hear helicopters, sirens, and the sound of projectiles. We can smell the smoke and see the flames. Our eyes burn with tears, both heartfelt and chemically triggered. To understand what is happening around us, we must remember Dr. Martin Luther King’s words from his visit to Minnesota in 1967:

“I have an obligation to vigorously condemn the conditions in our society that cause people to feel they have no other alternative than to engage in self-defeating violence. Riots are the language of the unheard. Our summers of riots are caused by our winters of delay.”

Change has been delayed for far too long in Minnesota. In the next days and weeks, as the fires are put out and we move out of crisis mode, we have a choice to make. The death of George Floyd has brought us to an apex from which we could easily slide back into complacency with a system that does not value Black lives. We cannot squander the opportunity to use the momentum of this outrage to press for true transformation for greater justice and equity in our communities.

If we are going to heal and learn from this tragedy, we must each invest in anti-racism work. Twin Cities Diversity in Practice is committed to its vision of creating a vibrant and inclusive legal community, but this community does not exist in isolation. Our companies and firms are inseparable from the cities around us. We know that our mission to attract, recruit, advance, and retain attorneys of color cannot be fulfilled unless we are committed to leveraging our power as attorneys to bring about greater justice and equity for people of color.

As a first step, TCDIP and our Member Organizations must care for and support attorneys of color, especially Black attorneys, who are experiencing distress right now. Working in partnership with our Minnesota-based affinity bar organizations, TCDIP is developing a series of events for attorneys of color to process and address the trauma they are experiencing following the killing of George Floyd. These events will be led by a facilitator who will offer strategies for coping after a traumatic event, with a special focus on supporting attorneys of color who work in predominantly white spaces. We will also offer programming for white allies to help them understand the trauma communities of color are experiencing and how they can practice allyship in times of crisis and beyond.

You may be wondering: what can Member Organizations do right now? What can I do right now? Consider:

1. There is an urgent need to listen to and support black attorneys and other attorneys of color. If you have not already, reach out to them. Acknowledge the difficulty of this moment and that you, and your company, are there to support them. At a time when we are socially distanced, connecting with people is even more important.

2. Reach out to your TCDIP Clerks and summer associates and offer them support. It is important to acknowledge the severity and impact of what is happening. We have reached out to the TCDIP Clerks to offer space and resources and to acknowledge what is happening.

3. Educate yourself. A few resources are linked below to get you started. If you have more resources you would like to share with the TCDIP community, please share with me and we’ll collect and distribute. We would encourage you to share these resources with your firm or company at large.

• 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
• Anti-Racism Resources
• Mapping Our Social Change Roles in Times of Crisis

At our Board meeting next week, TCDIP will be discussing what actions we can take to support attorneys of color and our Member Organizations as we work toward a more just and equitable Twin Cities, and a more just and equitable nation.

Please take care of yourselves and each other.

Sincerely,

Caryn Boisen                                  Neera Chatterjee                           Summra M. Shariff

Board Co-Chair                              Board Co-Chair                              Executive Director