Press Release: For immediate release
Contact Information:
Lea Berhane, Director of Fund Development & Marketing
lea.berhane@star-vista.org
StarVista Stands Against Racism and White Supremacy
San Carlos, CA October 1, 2020 – StarVista, a nonprofit that delivers high impact services through counseling, skill development, and crisis prevention to children, youth, adults, and families to San Mateo County residents, stands against racism and white supremacy.
In a statement sent out by StarVista: StarVista is an anti-racist agency with a vision to foster and advance equitable communities in which everyone thrives, regardless of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, ability, age, sex, gender, expression, gender identity, or sexual orientation. We firmly denounce white supremacy – it is immoral. Racism undermines the very mission and basic values upon which our Agency was built on 55 years ago.
BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color), brown, women, girls, and transgender and gender non-conforming people have historically faced the brunt of society’s burdens and they continue to do so today. It is also important that we address the injustice regarding Breonna Taylor. This is another demonstration of a system that disregards and dismisses the lives of Black women and demonstrates that we are still far from an equitable system.
We are taking concrete steps to be anti-racist, and we utilize diversity, equity, and inclusion best practices. StarVista is developing a strategic plan that prioritizes these values, strengthening our Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accountability (IDEA) Committee, developing trainings for our leadership and our teams, reviewing our agency policies and procedures.
StarVista’s Executive Leadership Team reaffirms our stance against forces that cultivate hate, violence, and distrust, and assure our agency, clients, and supporters that we will continue to fight for a community that is inclusive, equitable, and just. We are committed to being an anti-racist and anti-hate agency that fights for these values. We celebrate diversity and strive to be welcoming.