Voices that Cut Through the Noise

Dear CWC Community, 

The last ten days in America once again warn us that racism, if not eradicated, will cause undue harm to our fellow citizens, rip us apart as a nation, and eventually topple our democracy. Will we listen?

YES. 

A white man kneeling on a black man’s neck is not just one knee on one neck. It’s the weight of centuries of oppression, eviscerating the lives of Black people, through physical violence, economic violence, and social violence. It’s the manifestation of an entrenched racist and patriarchal system. It’s what happens in a culture that has far too long assumed that the person under the knee alone bears the responsibility of moving the knee. But, George Floyd decimated that assumption when he cried, “I can’t breathe.” We are listening and we hear you, Mr. Floyd. Yours is a cry we commit to amplify and address through our work at the Colorado Women’s College. 

We will dig deeper and ask ourselves what more we can do. We will begin with empathy as we convene courageous conversations to change beliefs and behaviors, including our own. We will act in concert with students, faculty, staff, alums, partners and friends to hammer away at organizational systems, community structures, political systems, and social constructs. We will own our identities and experiences as we approach the work ahead with humility, curiosity, courage and persistence. We will inspire hearts and minds and motivate a united community to dismantle, destroy and rebuild in the image of an equitable world.

At CWC, we believe equity is in reach - not just in our students’ lifetimes, but in our own. For over 500 years, this country has been waiting for the generation that puts an end to racism and inequity. To that we say, in solidarity, “Us. Now.”

Ann Ayers

Dean, Colorado Women’s College

I offer this message from the hearts and minds of our entire team at CWC, with whom I am grateful and honored to work each and every day. 

#equityis #blacklivesmatter #silenceisviolence #cwc