Covid-19 Response

Dear Durham,

These are challenging times for all of us. As the COVID-19 pandemic escalates, we are navigating an entirely new environment and the urgent need to care for ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities in new ways. Now more than ever it’s important to think about the well-being of all of us, to have compassion and patience for each other, and to fight for each other.

Durham For All has closed our office temporarily, and while working remotely, our staff team is exploring creative ways to bring the power of our organizing work to virtual spaces. Stay tuned for updates on how to connect and take action with us online.

Our organizing is rooted in bringing our people out of isolation and bringing us back to deeply feeling that we all belong. Despite physical distance, now is not a time for us to retreat into isolation but to insist that the solution to this crisis lies in working together to build a Durham and a democracy for all of us.

I encourage you to donate to mutual aid efforts that are distributing food and supplies to those in need and at high health risk. Here in North Carolina, Day One Disaster Relief is working with directly-impacted communities in partnership with local leaders, and Durham Public Schools Foundation is coordinating directly with our school district to support impacted youth. See below for more opportunities to support.

It is in times of great need that Durham has bonded together to show how we live our values. We know that our economic system doesn’t work to meet our needs, yet throughout history we have practiced ways to stay resilient. I urge you all to remember those practices, take the time to reintegrate them into your life, and share them with others.

It is morally wrong that our health and safety weren’t prioritized by our president in preparing for this epidemic. That immediate failure points to a deeper moral wrong: the repeated failure of our government to provide adequate healthcare, homes, and resources for all of us.

This pandemic is occurring in the midst of one of the most critical election years of our lives, and the unfolding crisis only heightens how much is at stake. As we respond to the pandemic, Durham For All remains committed to building grassroots political power so that we can govern our lives and better care for each other. Now is the time to stay connected in spite of our physical distance, take care of each other, and face this global challenge unified.

With love and solidarity,
Käjí Reyes-Gertes
Executive Director

 

Other Community Response Efforts:

 

 

 

    • Down Home NC– providing supplies/financial support to folks in rural NC