Statement from our union’s president marking Black History Month and honoring Tyre Nichols

Today, our union joins the nation in celebrating the beginning of Black History Month. We are honoring this year’s theme of “Black Resistance” and vowing to continue the fight for a world where we’re respected and protected.

Within our movement and beyond, Black leaders have paved the way by resisting racial and economic injustice, but as we know, the contributions of our Black siblings have helped build a nation that continues to fail them. The killing of Tyre Nichols last month is a stark reminder that Black communities experience disproportionately violent policing in our everyday lives.

February should be a month of remembrance, celebration, and connection; instead, we are grieving the murder of our brother Tyre and overcoming the trauma that stems from the murder of another innocent member of our communities at the hands of those who are supposed to protect us. The hearts of our 1199NW family go out to SEIU members in Memphis, their community, and the Nichols family. Until Black people are safe where we live, we can have no shared security, shared prosperity, or shared dignity.

Our union is on a path to becoming an anti-racist organization, and we will hold ourselves accountable to do our part to address racism through every fight we undertake — from the bargaining table, to our individual workplaces, to the halls of power. Union siblings, I ask that each of you joins me in that commitment, and I hope you feel inspired to take action in your communities to create anti-racist environments where we can all thrive.

In unity,

Jane Hopkins
President
SEIU Healthcare 1199NW