"We give ourselves permission to believe in the power of our demands and the strength of our convictions to take back what is already ours. We cannot allow an isolationist impulse to dictate our movement strategy given the political urgency of now. As various communities of Black women, we have always faced innumerable personal, and unspeakable brutalities. We cannot allow the travesties that have affirmed disregard for our existence to continue to flourish while we wither away with resentment and stew in our own rage. Continue to act to eradicate oppression whenever it shows up. This has been our inherited tradition for centuries, practiced in diverse ways around the world, in in both peaceful protest and in righteous anger in the face of indignities and in the face of dehumanization.
As the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) is set to expire at midnight, September 30, 2018 when we rally in New York City and march on the National Mall in Washington, DC September 29, 2018, our mass mobilization is a reminder that what matters to Black women must be spoken and prioritized. Rally with your feet, rally with your voice, rally with your heart, rally with your conscience and your vote. This year marks one hundred years since the lynching death of Mary Turner in 1918, and we invoke anti-lynching crusader Ida B. Wells and say #BlackWomenRise. Rise with #OneVote and demand an end to the killing of our sisters by state agents and institutions of the state. With #OneVote demand an end to the kidnappings and exploitation of our girls who continue to go missing. Rise with #OneVote to end sexualized violence, discrimination in economic and the political fields. On September 29 rise with Black women by marching with us in D.C. and rally with us in NY on September 30, 2018."
Read the full statement from Black Women's Blueprint and learn more about the march here.
