Statement from Jobs With Justice Executive Director Erica Smiley on Events in DC
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
1/7/2021
Contact: Nick Voutsinos, Jobs With Justice, nick@jwj.org, 717-413-7613
Statement from Jobs With Justice Executive Director Erica Smiley on Events in DC:
Call it what it was — a state-sponsored attack on multi-racial Democracy, an institutional endorsement of white nationalism.
Washington, D.C.— Yesterday, white vigilantes encouraged by President Trump stormed the United States Capitol building in a failed effort to nullify the 2020 election results. Jobs With Justice Executive Director Erica Smiley issued the following statement in response:
“Donald Trump was quick to call for police violence against peaceful Black protestors, but when it came to violent white supremacists, he left the door to the Capitol Building wide open. These radical racists then stormed into the halls of Congress, confederate flags in tow, in an effort to nullify the millions of Black, Brown, Immigrant, and Indigenous voices who voted against their proclaimed leader — while also drowning out the voices of our white allies who believe in a future that includes all working people united against bigotry.
“There can be no spinning this. These white supremacist invaders were carrying Trump flags with their confederate flags. These anti-democratic zealots were taking selfies with the police who let them walk into the heart of our Democracy — the same police who were targeting, beating, detaining, and even killing peaceful Black protestors in DC just this past summer. So, call it what it was — a state-sponsored attack on multi-racial Democracy, an institutional endorsement of white nationalism.
“Those responsible for aiding and abetting these insurrectionary racists must be held fully accountable — and that starts with the removal of Donald Trump, and all of his minions in Congress who enabled him and helped spread his hateful, racist, anti-democratic agenda throughout the country. And we stand with our allies in the fight against systemic racism in policing by calling for a full investigation into the disparity between the police response to white nationalist insurrectionists, and to peaceful Black Lives Matter protestors.
“But let us be clear — Donald Trump and his army of white vigilantes would not exist without their corporate patrons. Private equity giants like Blackstone and JPMorgan Chase can ‘denounce’ white supremacist violence on twitter all they want — but the fact is, these corporations, and others like them, donated millions to support Trump’s campaign, and in turn, the spread of his racist and violent rhetoric. Social media giants like Facebook allowed the Trump insurrectionists to organize their attempted coup online, and other Big Tech companies like Amazon has been selling their racist ‘merchandise’ for years. These corporate monopolies are just as responsible for what happened in DC yesterday as Trump is. They are enemies of democracy, enemies of the people, and must be broken up.”
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Jobs With Justice is the country’s leading nonprofit in the fight for workplace and economic democracy. Comprising of a national network of local affiliates in nearly every state, Jobs With Justice brings together coalitions of unions, worker organizations, community groups, students, and faith institutions to win concrete improvements in people’s lives.