Black Lives Matter

A Statement from the Brothers of the Unnamed Path

June 2020

We the Brothers of the Unnamed Path wish to express our condolences to the families who have lost so many individuals to racial inequality and violence. Especially most recently to the families of George Floyd, Tony McDade, and Breonna Taylor. We mourn with you and ask the spirits of their ancestors and ours to guide them home. May they find peace and may they continue to rise in power.

Secondly we would like to condemn the excessive brutal actions of the police system. Systemic racism is a sickness that our country has had since its birth. It can often be seen most prevalently in the actions of those who are ‘sworn to protect and serve.’ We call on our local and federal governments to pass quick and decisive resolutions that will address this inequality and bring to justice those who murdered Black and other people of color in their charge. We demand a new system that will work with the community rather than against it.

Thirdly we believe it is not in our power to tell our Black siblings how to grieve and how to demand change. The loss of life far outweighs the loss of possessions and goods. As queer individuals our own struggle for rights and acceptance is often credited to the Stonewall Uprising or as others call it, the Stonewall Riots. In the words of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “Riots do not develop out of thin air, certain conditions continue to exist in our society that must be condemned…Riots are the language of the unheard…Social justice and progress are the absolute guarantors of riot prevention.” Sometimes great trees that look ok on the outside are actually rotten and decaying on the inside. When they are like that they are often burned or cut down so that new growth will spring forth from their ashes.

Lastly we call on those who would call themselves allies; we call on you to stop and listen to those you are claiming to help. The focus right now is finding justice for our Black siblings and we need to listen to what they need. We need to use our privilege to lift up their voices and take ourselves out of the spotlight. Black Lives Matter, and we need to make sure they are heard.

“No Pride for some of us without liberation for all of us.” – Marsha P. Johnson

– The Brotherhood of the Unnamed Path