Citrine stands in support of the Black community and Black Lives Matter movement, especially in the shadow of the recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and Tony McDade, amongst many others. While the recent events have refocused our collective attention, we recognize that violence and oppression against minority groups, especially the black community, have been deeply woven into the fabric of our country since its founding. We unequivocally condemn both the historic and ongoing injustice and violence towards minority communities. We must do more to address this issue and stand behind the Black community and all marginalized communities.
We are fully committed to advancing this conversation within our organization by taking the following immediate actions:
- We are actively engaging with organizations that advocate and support marginalized groups to promote ongoing dialogue on advocacy and change.
- We have created a matching program for employee donations to organizations advocating for justice for members of the Black community.
- We support our team members by providing paid time off to participate in activism, advocacy, and volunteer efforts to advance social justice.
- We are observing Juneteenth as a company holiday.
Longer-term, we are taking resolute steps to play a more active role in elevating these conversations around equity, inclusion and working against the systematic disadvantages that exist for marginalized populations. To this end, our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion task force, led by our COO, is engaged in identifying partner organizations to support and collaborate with consistently.
The work of being an ally falls to those who have benefitted from great privilege throughout our lives. Therefore, we realize that our responsibility as an organization lies with each of us, as allies, not with those who have experienced a lifetime of discrimination.
These efforts are just the beginning of a long journey for us as individuals, an organization, and a society, but we are committed to playing our part to create a more just and equitable world.