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Galvanize and Hack Reactor Community,
I'm writing as cities continue to experience unrest following the murders of
George Floyd,
Ahmaud Arbery,
Breonna Taylor,
Tony McDade, and
so many others before them. As an Ally, I myself, am still feeling a variety of emotions (pain, sorrow, anger, disappointment, fear) and I know emotions only expand amongst our Galvanize and Hack Reactor community. It''s an extremely heavy time for many.
I want to send a simple, clear, and unequivocal message: Galvanize stands against any form of hatred or discrimination, especially against our Black colleagues, students, alumni, members, clients and the Black community at large. We hear you, we see you, and we stand with you. The nationwide protests have once again shone a light on a pressing racial issue that was planted in this country upon inception and has persisted in strength for far too long.
I urge you to talk about what is happening with those around you and, most importantly, listen with empathy. We all have a lot to learn. And while I believe listening with empathy is one half of the equation, I believe the other half is action.
I do not have all the answers. However, I would like to encourage you to start with three simple steps if you haven''t done so already. Galvanize will encourage and support everyone in our community to:
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Educate yourself and others. Our community of self-starters, educators, and entrepreneurs at Galvanize already understands the value of education. I encourage you to take a look at this list of resources. Find items that are new to you, digest them, and share what resonates with those around you, including with the Galvanize and Hack Reactor community so we all can be more educated. For staff, we''ll be reimbursing employees for costs associated with buying books to learn more.
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Create space for reflection. Approach each conversation delicately and with empathy. Begin each conversation and meeting from a place of understanding and start by asking "how are you doing?" We honor the space our staff need to reflect, recharge, and rest, and will be supporting a culture of time off for self-care, especially right now. We encourage all of our communities to follow suit and create space.
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Take action when you're ready. Once you feel sufficiently educated and have found time to reflect, I encourage you to speak out and take action in a meaningful way to you. Perhaps your strongest voice in this country is through voting, both locally and nationally. To encourage everyone to participate, Galvanize will recognize the Presidential Election Day as a company holiday moving forward. We hope this will encourage all staff, students, and members to vote, and hope it inspires other organizations to do the same.
There are undoubtedly more actions we, as an organization, need to take. There are even more that we, as citizens, need to take to create a more just society. In the coming days and weeks, I''d like to spend more time listening to your ideas as we formulate additional actions. I welcome all thoughts grounded in equality as we embark on the path forward in creating a more inclusive community within the company, and in our own communities outside of Galvanize as well.
If you have thoughts, suggestions, or ideas, please send them to better.together@galvanize.com. In the meantime, please know that I am partnering with our People & Culture team and our Diversity & Inclusion employee group to generate, evaluate, and deploy the most effective actions we can take as a company to move forward, with considerations.
Until then, please respect and support one another during this time of much-needed change.
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Harsh Patel
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| CEO, Galvanize
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| 1644 Platte St, Denver, CO 80202
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