We stand with Black Lives Matter

An Open Letter to the Thrive Community and Friends 

First, I want to apologize for my delay in writing this letter. I have struggled with finding the exact right words to say in this moment to all of you. I have worried that I would say the wrong thing or represent our amazing, and diverse, team in the wrong way. However, I realized that my silence feels far more uncomfortable than possible missteps or mistakes will. More than that, some might interpret my silence as a lack of solidarity and support for communities that I hold dear. 

I am writing this letter to make sure it is completely, unequivocally, clear as to where Thrive as an organization stands, and where I stand as both Thrive’s leader, but also in every role in my life. In the past, I have not commented professionally on systems of oppression in our country and have kept my social justice beliefs more private and limited to my personal life. 

The events of the past few weeks have weighed heavily on my heart and soul but not nearly as heavily as centuries of oppression have weighed on Black people in this country. At Thrive and as a psychologist, I stand with the Black Lives Matter Movement and am entirely in support of making systemic changes in both our country but also in our lives, communities, conversations, hearts, and our office. 

I will not keep silent and I am committed to acting with determination and integrity to combat racism to do my part to help undo centuries of damage that has brought us here. 

I am actively working to be anti-racist in my own life and to learn more about my own privilege and how that may impact the lives of those around me. I believe that it is my responsibility as a person with significant privilege to use that privilege to help drive change in our world and communities. It is my responsibility to listen to voices that have long been silenced and to then use that knowledge for change. 
I stand not only with Black Lives Matter but with each and every marginalized and oppressed group in our country. 

I believe that we as a society have a lot of work to do and that we can do better to serve those who are most vulnerable. As Thrive’s leader, I am working to consider ways to better serve our community and am here to listen and work to understand how we can do so moving forward. 

As Maya Angelou said, “do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”  This is my plan moving forward for myself and Thrive.
 
Respectfully and Lovingly, 
Erica