Over 100 rally in Long Beach to support racial justice at SURJ demonstration
Noting that large numbers of White people voted for authoritarianism in November, activist Barry Stees said, 'We've got a lot of work to do organizing our cousins.'
Organizers with Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) said they were expecting just over 25 people to come out and support their "Stand against the MAGA far right" demonstration on Saturday. Instead, well over 100 people met at the First Congregational Church of Long Beach to share their stories, encourage others to get involved and support each other and the community.
SURJ was founded in 2009 by two queer White women from the South who responded to the call from Black movement leaders to organize White people within their community.
Founded in the wake of the election of President Barack Obama, the organization focused on addressing a "vicious and powerful racist backlash."
Today SURJ is the largest organization in the U.S. focused on mobilizing White people, with 200 chapters around the country advancing racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights, immigrant rights and universal healthcare, according to its website.
Barry Stees, a member of the Long Beach chapter, says that work has become more difficult since the recent re-election of President Donald Trump.
"We know that White people voted in big numbers for authoritarianism this November," he said. "We've got a lot of work to do organizing our cousins."
Stees said SURJ urges members to do more than talk to their families at the dinner table. The organization actively seeks out members of their community with the hopes of promoting ideas and thoughts that will lead to a country that is welcoming to everyone, Stees said.
Holding the event on the first day of Black History Month was a reminder of what is at stake for the country, Stees said. "If you work for the State Department, Black History Month does not exist," he added.
"Once more secretaries get approved, the whole government will not recognize the work of our African American brothers, sisters and siblings that worked so hard to build this country up," he continued.
The demonstration was not just about the rise of racial discrimination throughout the country. SURJ members also addressed access to HIV medication, reproductive rights, as well as safety and protection for immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community.
Many who attended Saturday's demonstration say not taking action is no longer an option. "I'm getting involved because I just realized that if I do not, then I am silently being complacent," said Sara Williams.
Several members of SURJ said the organization gives them hope. Williams said she immediately felt "panic and despair," following Trump's presidential win. She believes SURJ offers people a way to channel those feelings.
"In the beginning of this run, they are going to push out all kinds of crazy things," she said. "They're banking on us being silent and being scared and feeling powerless. So when we come together like this, and we're public about it, we're letting them know, it's a clear message we are not going to be silent," she said.
Susan McKibben, an organizer for SURJ, said that it's easy to divide people when they lose sight of their shared interests.
"If you're concerned about healthcare; if you're concerned about rehab or drug treatment for a loved one; if you're concerned about Social Security; if you're concerned about the environment – any of these things – then getting together with other people to resist the people in power and the ultra-wealthy trying to enact upon us, you have a shared interest in this work," she said.
Sami Reed said that as a White woman, she never faced discrimination — until 2008 when she and her wife began advocating against Proposition 8, a state constitutional amendment that banned same-sex marriage but was later overturned by the courts.
Reed said that after being berated and discriminated against, she decided not to feel that way again. "That made me feel such rage," she said. "I felt, 'I don't want to feel like that,' I want to stand in my love."
She then encouraged those in attendance to stand in love as they set out to continue to do work in the community.
Members of SURJ signed a pledge to "Protect the rights, safety, and dignity" of people in the community and to "Resist Trump's antidemocratic and immoral agenda" before marching to the Billie Jean King Library in Downtown Long Beach.
If you would like to learn more or get involved with SURJ Long Beach, you can follow them on Instagram.
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