The mission of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is to give voice, through song, to a community where everyone matters. 

What we know is that we cannot have a community where everyone matters until black lives matter.

As an organization we want to name that we stand in solidarity with the black community. We recognize that in this moment––silence is violence. It is our moral imperative to stand up and join in the call for an embrace of anti-racist mindsets, policies, and practices within ourselves, our organization, and our community.

The roots of Pride Month and modern LGBT+ rights came from trans leaders of color like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera who said “enough is enough.” Reading about these heroes and their stories is a helpful reminder that often social progress comes from protests and rage. That sometimes the ground must burn in order to create soil from which equality and anti-racism can thrive.

In order to make this commitment to anti-racism a reality, we are called to do both the internal and external work. If as individuals we protest and donate but do not unpack our own privilege and biases, then the change will not come. If we reflect deeply on our histories and interrogate systemic racism but do not show up for, with, and in our community, then the change will not come. If we somehow believe that this message absolves our organization of doing any actual anti-racist work, then change will not come. Our fight for black lives and our amplification of black voices must persist. Our commitment must not wane. 

While our concerts and rehearsals remain on pause we are inspired by the collective international chorus of voices calling for justice and equality for black lives. We are committed to joining in their song and to supporting the work of bringing racial justice to our community.

In solidarity,

Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus