Statement from Tonia Wellons, President and CEO of the Greater Washington Community Foundation
Yesterday was a sad day in America.
Our democracy has never been perfect. In fact, a healthy democracy thrives on debate and the productive exchange of ideas in the public square – sometimes vigorously. However, what we just witnessed yesterday in our Nation’s Capital is far from the kind of democracy that our founders fought for and so many of us aspire to uphold.
I have spent the better part of my career working in developing and transitional countries where democracy was fledgling and tenuous at best, and never once witnessed the attempted overthrow of government that we experienced at the seat of our democracy yesterday. On behalf of the Greater Washington Community Foundation, I want to strongly condemn the violent attack on the U.S. Congress and Capitol complex, the beacon of our nation and its democratic systems.
The brazen actions of these rioters were a blatant attempt to reverse the results of a free and fair democratic election. Those who seek to wreak havoc in our city and to desecrate our democratic institutions cannot and will not prevail. It is no longer sufficient to say, ‘this isn’t our America.’ It is, unfortunately!
And yet, the chaos of the day in our Nation’s Capital offered a stark contradiction to the victories hard won in Georgia. Victories obtained through grassroots organizing and through participatory governance; a cornerstone of our democracy. This too, is our America.
Many are resigned to view Washington, DC as a federal city and the seat of our democracy, and too often forget that this area is also home to thousands of people who chose to live, work, and raise their families in a prosperous region. As the CEO of the Greater Washington Community Foundation, which serves DC and its surrounding suburban communities, I know the DC region to be a place with a strong sense of community and a passion for social justice and philanthropy.
In our local community, I have been heartened to see momentum building for an equitable recovery and a move toward a deeper experience of our humanity and the manifestation of justice. But as the civil unrest that unfolded earlier this summer and the racial inequities exposed and exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis have shown us, we still have a long way to go until we truly realize the principles and ideals that “all men [and women] are created equal” and entitled to “certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
While we are concerned and abhorred by yesterday’s events, and all the circumstances leading up to it, the Greater Washington Community Foundation family will not be deterred from our work to ensure a future where we all have an equal opportunity to thrive. At The Community Foundation, we understand the needs and challenges facing our local community and will continue to focus our energy and resources on addressing inequities in housing, education, employment, medical care, and more. We are resolute in our commitment to creating an equitable, just, and thriving region, and will not fall prey to the distraction and disruption others would seek to create.
Those working to undermine our democracy want chaos. We choose community.