Yleana Leadership Foundation Response to Protests

June 2, 2020

To our Yleana alumni and family:

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Our mission at Yleana Leadership Foundation is to close the opportunity gap, one student at a time. But the existence of an opportunity gap is no accident: it exists because of a history of violence and oppression, decades of explicit policies designed to enforce white supremacy, and racist structures that persist in our society today.

So, in this moment, our mission requires us to speak out. Black lives matter. We condemn police violence and stand in solidarity with protests across the country.

For communities of color—for the communities many of our students come from—the injustices are too numerous to count. The brutal lynchings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd were not isolated events. White supremacy takes many forms: The disproportionate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, underfunded schools, harassment by police and by everyday white people weaponizing their whiteness. Our students are too often fighting for their lives against a society that wants them to fail.

The work that we do at Yleana addresses only a small part of the challenges our society must yet overcome.  But our commitment to our students means that we must actively commit to dismantling the systems of oppression they face. We continue to dedicate ourselves to this urgent task and thank you for your constant support as we do.

With the protests and activism in all of the cities we work in, we wanted to check in on how you’re doing and provide some resources others have created.

Protesting during COVID-19:

If you are attending protests, PLEASE wear a mask and socially distance as much as possible — we are still in the middle of a pandemic and large gatherings are known to spread COVID-19. Here are the CDC’s mask guidelines: bit.ly/YleanaMasks

If you feel like there’s a chance you’ve been exposed, it’s always better to know so you can make a safe plan for you and your family. Usually with an appointment, you can get free testing in your city:

Protesting in general:

Here are some guidelines from Amnesty International for protesting safely: bit.ly/YleanaProtests (see more resources below)

  1. Stay safe. Protest and demonstrate and do so safely. Many police and right-wing organizations have escalated violence.

  2. Care for others while protesting. Show respect and love, from social distancing to looking out for small businesses that are already struggling to stay open.

  3. Here are links to black activists who have said things very well and far better than us. We’d rather give them voice rather than speak for them.

If you have additional resources or advice you’d like to contribute to this page, just let us know!

Please let us know if we can do anything to support you right now! Sending lots of Yleana love - please know we’re thinking of you.

Resources from Yleana alumni

  • “If anyone is protesting please be prepared. As activism continues tactics to stop protestors become more violent. I suggest carrying a bookbag with water, milk (for relief from tear gas), soapy water (to scrub arms and legs if exposed to chemicals), snacks, a first aid kit, a sufficient amount of money to get home (in Philadelphia some public transportation discontinued their full route), and picking a safe space to meet your friends if you're separated.”