NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE CALLS SCOTUS DECISION ON LGTBQ RIGHTS “AN END TO AN INHUMANE POLICY” Urges Congress to Pass Equality Act Immediately

NEW YORK (June 15, 2020) -- National Urban League President Marc H. Morial said it’s difficult to calculate how many lives have been transformed because of today’s Supreme Court decision upholding the legal rights of LGBTQ Americans.

“In half the states, it still was legal until now to fire someone simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity,” Morial said. “Millions of Americans were forced to choose between living a lie and making a living. It was an inhumane policy, and we’re relieved to see it thrown on the ash heap of history.”

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Civil unrest. As protests grip cities and towns across the country, Marc Morial shares the latest on the fight for justice. Watch it on Facebook Live. | Police reform. Countless incidents of violence show that much of police culture in the United States is infected with racism. Here are our proposed measures to change that. | Legislative Policy Conference. Check out the lineup for our upcoming convening of the nation's top leaders and advocates, happening June 15-16. | Taking a stand. This week, Mastercard announced a $5 million donation to support our work in underserved communities. More on our partnership. | New unemployment numbers. The May Jobs Report is a shocker and our Senior Economic Advisor Dr. Bernard Anderson breaks it all down. Read on. | The latest. Our Policy team launched a new action alert to honor Breonna Taylor on what would have been her 27th birthday. Do your part to demand justice!

Chairwoman Maloney and Ranking Member Jordan, thank you for allowing me to testify today on behalf of the National Urban League. My long form testimony has been entered into the record.

I would like to pay tribute today to the Africans and their descendants whose labor without compensation built the U.S. Capitol, made possible the Statue of Freedom that sits atop the Capitol Dome, and made possible the rise of the United States as an economic superpower. I’d also like to lift up Ms. Breonna Taylor, an essential worker, an EMT from Louisville, whose life was cut short not by COVID, but by police officers serving a no knock warrant in March. African Americans are, and have always been, among the nation’s essential workers.

Written by: Dr. Germaine Smith-Baugh

Our residents in Broward County are angry and hurt over the cruelty we have witnessed in the recent deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery as well as the innumerable other Black lives that have been lost to police violence.

As we acknowledge frustrations, and rage, we are feeling as a nation, as a culture, and as individuals, we remember the larger historical context that birthed this moment.

Mr. Floyd last cried, “I can’t breathe. Please, I can’t breathe,” We emphasize his last words, “I can’t breathe,” and remind our communities that WE STILL CAN. We cannot afford to be silent. We won’t be silent.

Butterflies followed by hundreds of blue, silver and white balloons, many reading "Happy Birthday", speckled the sky over Louisville, Kentucky's Metro Hall on Saturday, part in celebration of the life of Breonna Taylor, and part in protest against the police killing of the young Black woman earlier this year.

Taylor would have turned 27 years old on Friday. She was killed by police on March 13 in a raid on her home. She was asleep when they barged in.

Taylor's name, along with that of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man killed by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota, last month, has been at the forefront of mass protests against police brutality that have gripped much of the United States for nearly two weeks.

While it has been almost three months since police killed Taylor, who was a Louisville emergency room technician, her family and friends, and thousands of protesters, say justice has not been served. 

Publix announced it is donating $1 million to support civil rights.

The large donation will go to National Urban League affiliates across the Southeast. The organization, which advocates on behalf of economic and social justice for African Americans, has seven affiliates in Florida.

“The last few months have brought unprecedented challenges to our company and our country. Throughout this time, I’ve been proud of Publix associates, working in our stores, facilities and behind the scenes to do what we have historically done so well — care for each other and our communities. Today, it’s evident that our support and compassion are required on an even deeper level,” CEO Todd Jones said in a letter posted on Publix’s website.