With the rest of the world, we waited nervously for the outcome of the trial of the officer who killed George Floyd. We hope that the jury’s guilty verdict brings some measure of peace and accountability to Mr. Floyd’s family, friends and community, knowing that there is no compensation for their loss, or his.
Mr. Floyd’s murder not only shocked the conscience but led to devasting impacts to the community that GPI has called home for nearly 25 years, and more importantly where so many of our colleagues live. Indeed, this is what moved us to speak out as an organization last May in a way that we candidly never had before as a clean energy and technology nonprofit. But silence was no longer acceptable.
Against the backdrop of so many injustices, one verdict obviously does not address the scale of change we need in the systems across American life that treat Black and Brown neighbors and citizens as less than fully human. But my hope is that this verdict marks a turning point for the kind of transformational change that we must all help bring about within our own spheres of influence.
We are a small organization, and, frankly, not as diverse as we want to be, nor playing as big a role as we want to in creating a more equitable society. But we are on that journey, and we will not only act as allies with organizations and communities of color, but will do what we can to be actively anti-racist and equitable in the energy policies, regulations, and practices we work to advance.
Our work – and society’s work – to create a just and racism-free world is not only required if we are to live up to the ideals of the Constitution, but essential to GPI’s mission.
The conclusion of this trial sends a powerful and important message. Now we must all work to translate that message into the new story of who we are.
Rolf
