Williams Skiing for Racial Justice

Dear Williams Nordic community and beyond,

The recent murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and Breonna Taylor, in addition to countless others, are horrifying and unacceptable, as is this nation's ongoing history of racial violence and oppression. We strongly condemn any form of racism, violence, or oppression and we want to express our solidarity in the fight against racial injustice.

We strongly support the college’s new plan to fight for racial and social justice as outlined by President Mandel, and we urge the college administration to continue to do as much as they can to contribute to this fight.

As Nordic skiers at Williams College, we participate in a sport that is both incredibly privileged and very homogenous. We recognize that our silence and our inaction are actively harmful and we want to use the privilege afforded to us to support this movement with more than just words. To that end, we have set up a GoFundMe page to raise money and awareness for the following organizations: 

• National Bail Fund Network: The National Bail Fund Network is part of the Community Justice Exchange which is committed to “organizing to end all forms of detention, criminalization, and surveillance.” The National Bail Fund Network is a series of community bail and bond funds that works to free people as well as fighting to abolish the money bail system and end pre-trial detention. This organization is led by women of color, has the ability to be matched by corporate donors (so your money goes twice as far!), and has particular relevance because of the high volume of protest-induced arrests recently. 

• Multicultural BRIDGE: BRIDGE is a grassroots organization centered in the Berkshire region. Their mission includes “promoting mutual understanding and respect among diverse groups serving as a resource to both local institutions and the community at large. We serve as catalysts for change and integration through collaboration, education, training, dialogue, fellowship and advocacy." The BRIDGE foundation is a local resource for Berkshire county and is also led by women of color.

• Ella Baker Center for Human Rights: The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights works to redirect funds from prisons and punishment towards building safer and stronger communities for Black, Brown, and low-income communities. Their program focuses on those communities most affected by mass incarceration and has transformed policies to redirect state funds for sentence enhancements towards community resources,such as firing racially-biased cops and abolishing youth prisons. The Ella Baker Center is based in Oakland, CA and is led by a man of color.

We have set a fundraising goal of $10,000. Access our GoFundMe page at the following link:

https://gf.me/u/x8cpf6

In addition, we feel that many organizations in the ski community, including US Ski and Snowboard, NENSA, and FIS, have not yet done enough with their platforms to condemn racial oppression and to join in this effort. FIS has remained completely silent and while US Ski and Snowboard and NENSA have taken steps in the right direction we would like to push them to do more. We are sending letters to each of these organizations, and we have composed a form letter that requests greater action on their part. We encourage any member of the nordic ski community to copy and submit the letter (or write your own) to:

https://usskiandsnowboard.org/about/contact-us [US Ski and Snowboard]

https://www.fis-ski.com/en/international-ski-federation/contact-fis [FIS]

https://nensa.net/contact-us/ [NENSA]:

Dear [FIS/NENSA/US Ski and Snowboard], 

My name is [Name], I am a [US Ski and Snowboard/FIS/NENSA member/member of the snowsports community] and I am reaching out to urge you, as an organization, to take a stand with the Black Lives Matter movement and to do more than you already have to contribute to the fight against racial injustice in this country. [for USSS/NENSA: I appreciate all that you have already done, and urge you to continue the work that you have started, including following through on the initiatives you have already proposed and amplifying and modifying them as necessary going forward.] [for FIS: This should come in the form of a public statement expressing your solidarity, providing immediate support to BLM organizations in need right now, and creating a plan for tangible steps to move your organization towards improving racial equality.]

I acknowledge that our sport, and snowsports as a whole, carry an incredible amount of racial and socioeconomic privilege. This immense privilege combined with the homogenous population of athletes, coaches, and leaders in our sports makes it easy for the snowsport community to look away at this time, to consider racial justice as “not our problem”, while continuing to perpetuate a culture of white privilege. The world is calling upon people of all colors, economic classes, and backgrounds to support the fight for racial justice. To be silent is to remain complicit in a system that most snowsports athletes have benefited and continue to benefit from. 

The murders of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery, only a small part of our nation’s long history of racial injustice, police brutality, and violence against Black people, have forced us all to become deeply aware of our own privilege and racial biases. The immediate action needed, and any action you have already taken, is only the start of a prolonged fight for racial justice. I urge [US Ski and Snowboard/FIS/NENSA] to do all this and more to show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement and the fight for racial justice in America. 

Sincerely,

[Name]

If you are able, we hope you will contribute in any way you can. If you would like to donate to organizations other than those we have listed, please do so! If you can think of other organizations or individuals within or outside the ski community that can do more for this effort, please urge them to do so as well! Please share this page, the form letter, and the GoFundMe link with anyone that you can, both within and outside the nordic ski community.

Donating to these organizations, demanding action from organizations with platforms greater than ours, and expressing our support are small but vitally important steps we can take right now, and we hope you will join us in this effort. As a team, we are continuously searching for better ways to understand our own privilege and contribute to a more just world, and our ears and hearts are open to listen and learn. 

Thank you for reading and contributing as you can.

Sincerely,

The Williams College Nordic Ski Team