Dear Students and Palomar College Community,

The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmed Aubrey have been catalysts to worldwide protests, yet they speak to a much larger picture of racial disparities that are the result of systemic racism. The Puente Project at Palomar College acknowledges the pain and anger of the Black community, with an understanding that the suffering caused by oppression and injustice goes beyond this particular moment in time.

Puente stands in solidarity with the Black community. We know that statements of support are not enough, and that real change comes from action. Our organization is driven by a vision of equity and social justice, and we are committed to serve as allies in the dismantling of systems of oppression on our campus and in our communities. We recognize our communal responsibility to speak out against racism and amplify Black voices. Tu lucha es mi lucha; your struggle is my struggle.

In Unity,

The Palomar College Puente Project

Dear Palomar Community,

The Umoja Program at Palomar recognizes that this moment of pain, in which we yet again mourn Black deaths, is just one moment in a long series of such moments. The country has seen protest after protest and yet we find ourselves in the same place again and again. We call for an end to anti-Blackness, and we sincerely hope that this current moment of solidarity will lead to necessary and overdue systemic changes, not just at Palomar but in the nation. We fully support the proposals put forward by Black Palomar students. Black Lives Matter!

In Unity,

Umoja Program, Palomar College

As faculty and staff of the American Indian Studies department of Palomar College, we condemn the state and police violence against our Black relatives. We affirm our commitment to social justice and stand in solidarity with our Black community at Palomar, Tom-Kav (Fallbrook & Bonsall), Tovalum & Shikapa (Vista & San Marcos), Panakare & Mixéelum pompáwvo (Escondido), Wahaumai  (Guajome), Ahta’, Awilkilkil & Awi kuesaay (Rancho Bernardo), and all unceded territories.

We acknowledge the pain and anger Black communities are experiencing due to the policing and systemic racism that has led to the abuse and murder of Black people. We denounce the lack of accountability within the U.S. justice system and recognize that it is a product of a pattern of violent imperialism, settler colonialism and white supremacy. As American Indian Studies scholars and educators, we recognize that the roots of racism lie within an interrelated structure of inequity, and that the U.S. nation state grew out of these same roots. We denounce this horror.

We have a responsibility to fight for the well-being of our Black relatives. Black people, as displaced Indigenous peoples themselves, share a complex historical relationship with the Indigenous peoples of this continent including slavery, intermarriage, resistance, and solidarity. We also acknowledge the insidiousness of anti-Blackness in Indigenous communities throughout all our nations and communities in America, north, south, east and west. We are committed to holding ourselves, our relatives and our communities accountable when we perpetuate anti-Blackness. We doubly dedicate ourselves to the work of decolonization and anti-racism while maintaining and revitalizing Indigenous Nationhood.

We are here to listen, support and commit to concrete actions that contribute to the safety and well-being of all Black students on and off Palomar campus. We support the convened students, staff, faculty, administration and community representing the Black Lives Matter movement on campus and locally who have demanded major transformative change. This includes: a reassessment of the qualifications and training of Palomar Police and Security including race-conscious trainings; the hiring of Black Faculty, Staff and Administration who are engaged in Black Consciousness initiatives; the creation of a Black Student Resource Center; the auditing and reformation of academia including the development of anti-racist resource materials, trainings, classes, COR’s, & SLO’s, all while promoting anti-racist and inclusive classrooms, college spaces and engagement. And we can do more. This can not be solved by education alone. This is a time to hear the heart beats and voices of our widowed, fatherless, and suffering Black relatives. This is a time to learn and act with compassion, integrity and solidarity.

As we fight for Indigenous sovereignty, we also fight for Black liberation. We will continue to support and uphold Black student voices at our college and in our communities.

All lives matter when Black Lives Matter.

In solidarity and allyship,

– The American Indian Studies Department of Palomar College