At Substantial, we are devastated by the multiple acts of racism that have taken place over the last several weeks. We recognize the horrific legacy of systemic racism as being both persistent and pervasive within our communities – particularly our black communities – and grieve for Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and countless other lives lost.
Like many, we are also forced to look at our own role in a system that suppresses the painful realities of racism. Within our work of supporting schools and districts, we have not always leaned into our duty or agency. We have made conscious and unconscious choices to prioritize comfort over speaking the truth about how institutionalized inequities and racial disparities contribute to the stark differences in how substitute teaching works in different communities.
This stops now. We are challenging ourselves to be braver and better – to worry less about the risk of talking about how systemic racism impacts our schools and more about the damage we do by not speaking directly to it.