Zero Inequality — A Stand for Justice
“I can’t breathe.” George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man gasps while a police officer holding his knee on Floyd’s neck pins him to the pavement while Floyd is in handcuffs. (Full coverage by the Washington Post)
As of May 31st, 2020 there have been protests in at least 75 cities across the United States and Europe in response to the death of George Floyd. Some demonstrations have turned violent and involved the National Guard in at least 11 states.
While the police officer was fired and has been charged with third-degree murder and three other officers also have been fired in association with the crime — people are enraged. The current level systemic racism is unacceptable.
The policeman’s charge addresses the symptom not the cause. A black man dying as a result of police brutality is an indication of the deeper disease of systemic racism engrained in the culture and institutions of our society. Systemic racism is a different type of pandemic; one that in the day-to-day normalcy of our lives we wish did not exist. I admit, even I am guilty at times of silently ignoring altercations in the hope that occurrences are anomalies, flukes, and temporarily suspending the belief that there is not a broader plague at play. With no easy cure, lack of clarity on how to address the core issue, and balancing the competing responsibilities of life, I choose to wait for it to pass and correct itself. That is wrong — systemic racism will not be corrected by mass inaction and neglect.
I applaud the peaceful protesters who have gathered in George Floyd’s name to elevate systemic racism for our policy makers, our business leaders, our activists, our allies, our violators, and our silent observers alike. You have challenged all of us to ask ourselves,
“What can I do to move the world toward eradicating systemic racism?”
Systemic racism is inherently complex and the symptoms appear in the disparity between communities of color versus their white counterparts in — the poorer health outcomes, the lower wealth, the lack of representation in positions of power in our businesses and our government, the higher unemployment rates, the lower levels educational attainment, and the higher levels of representation among the incarcerated. With such pervasive indicators of corrosion, we inherently understand that systemic racism is deeply engrained in countless facets of our society and may become paralyzed by the enormity of the infection; but we can make a difference and it will take each of us.
I do not have an answer of what we each can do, but I will share what I have chosen to do in the hopes that each one can choose to act and stand for justice— no matter how small.
More than two years go we launched Rebel One to focus on creating a community for the rebels — the innovators that fail to accept the status quo and are working to launch for-profit startups building wealth and creating a positive impact on humanity. Today, Rebel One has evolved into a fund and training organization to democratize access to innovation. We focus on backing ventures aligned with achieving Zero Inequality (inspired by Muhammad Yunus’s zero goals) and today we are highlighting ventures we believe are supporting advancement toward eliminating inequality and addressing components of systemic racism.
Civic Eagle
We believe that policy advocates help shape and change the world, so we’ve built them better tools to discover, track and collaborate on state legislation.
Promise
We get people out of jail and provide ongoing support and supervision to help keep them out.
Promise provides a cost-effective, more humane alternative to incarceration by extending the capabilities of community supervision, improving long-term outcomes for individuals and communities.
Acciyo
The Acciyo chrome plugin helps everyday readers catch up on the reported highlights of stories they care about, along with background context they may have missed to stay informed.
70 Million Jobs
The first national, for-profit employment platform for people with criminal records. A Y Combinator company, we have more than 11 million job seekers in our community, and work with some of the country’s largest employers, through our staffing business (70 Million) and job board (70 Million Jobs).
Propel
A venture-backed tech company that’s making the safety net more user-friendly.
Democratizing access to innovation by supporting for-profit founders aligned with the zero goals including Zero Inequality is how we have chosen to support progress toward addressing some of these systemic issues. Together, we can make strides in eradicating systemic racism by each taking a piece of the problem. Whether it is working on equal access to quality healthcare or education, supporting advancement of women and underrepresented leaders, starting a business to employ and empower disenfranchised communities, or investing in ventures addressing these issues — there are many ways to join the movement while not downplaying the current call to specifically address racism. Let’s not let it end here and channel our energy into continuing to make progress. Let it reflect in how we vote. Let us continue the protest peacefully though being relentless in our pursuit to solving these issues, speaking out, encouraging debate and dialogue. Let us ask “What can I do?” and so we can never hear “I can’t breathe.” again.
Best,
Sergio Marrero
#MoreJusticeMorePeace #BlackLivesMatter
