(Eureka, CA) Our North Coast communities are changing. Migration and rapid demographic shifts and the economic struggles that many of our neighbors face are causing tension and creating new challenges, for newcomers and long-time residents alike.

Immigrants and people of color seek their place in the community with safety from harassment and discrimination, Tribal and Indigenous people seek a return of their right to self-determination and sovereignty and the rural White working class is seeking their own equity and experiencing an unprecedented spike in what’s been labeled as the: ”Deaths of Despair”. As we move forward into the future, the strongest communities will be ones where all people can take part in economic, civic, and social life. These communities will be able to go beyond fear and even tolerance to a bright future for all of our people. Now is the time for bold leadership and action from our County Board of Supervisors.

True North Organizing Network calls on the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors to lead the way in creating this bright future by taking two concrete actions--(1) Pass a “Welcoming County Resolution” based upon the Welcoming America model; and (2) Pass and implement a Social and Racial Equity Resolution based upon the City of Seattle’s, Resolution 31577.

Passing and implementing these two resolutions will give a clear and unambiguous message to our diverse community that our Humboldt County Board of Supervisors is committed to an inclusive future for all and a framework for our community to come together in order to create. Working together to make our county more welcoming with social/racial equity will lower tensions and make us stronger and more resilient in the face of change and challenge.

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In the wake of the racially motivated violence in Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday, True North Organizing Network issues the following statement:

True North Organizing Network unequivocally rejects racism, white supremacy and white nationalism. We condemn the use of violence by Unite the Right and other white supremacist organizations and individuals. Our hearts go out to the victims of that violence.

We reject the conclusion that there is a moral equivalency between the racist violence on graphic display in Charlottesville on Saturday, and the actions of people defending human dignity by standing up to hate groups. Racism, white supremacy and white nationalism needs to be called out when it’s present, and not denied or rationalized by politically correct language. We must not allow those that profit from racism to obscure or deny it.

As we collectively denounce racist, white supremacist and white nationalist rhetoric, True North Organizing Network calls on our brothers and sisters of goodwill of all ethnicities to refuse to allow neo-nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, and other avowed racists to spread messages of hate. We invite our brothers and sisters in Humboldt and Del Norte Counties to join our network and create a place where life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are available to everyone.