Black Lives Matter!
Local 104 is a collective of professional musicians, and we welcome and invite musicians of color to join us as we strive to provide Union protections.
The Executive Board of Local 104 of the American Federation of Musicians is appalled at the murders of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and other persons of color who were members of the Human Community living on this planet we call home. This has gone on for too long, and it is simply unconscionable for it to continue.
As an arts organization Local 104 joins other arts organizations around the globe who have spoken out against the violence that disproportionately targets people of color. We demand that our black colleagues and colleagues of color be afforded the same protections as our non-black and non-person of color colleagues.
Local 104 prides itself on affording equal musical opportunities to all members. We now further commit to pursuing organizational changes to allow us to pursue the following objectives, with the goal of true inclusion for our black members and members of color.
We will:
- Be proactive in inviting people of color to become members of the Executive Board.
- Collaborate with other local arts organizations on anti-racist initiatives ensuring that people of color are afforded the same opportunities in all aspects of the arts.
- Actively reach out into our musical community to seek ideas from members of color on what we as a board can do be more inclusive.
- Continue to seek to improve the awareness of the overall membership about the plight of all people of color, not just those who are members of the Local.
- We believe that change can only happen when enough people are willing to stand up and make their voices heard. For this reason our Executive Board will help lead the cry to stand up, become involved, and refuse to stay silent.
Black Lives Matter!