Mar 13, 2020 12:00:00 AM
Dear Friends and Fellow Activists,
Our brightbeam team cares about your safety and ours.
Like you, we are closely watching the national news and government reports about the coronavirus (COVID-19) so that we can act appropriately.
We are fortunate that our organization converted to being a completely virtual team 18 months ago, which means we have the ability to keep working (so long as we’re healthy) while states, cities, and school districts take steps recommended by scientists to ensure public safety.
At the same time, brightbeam exists to shine a light on the condition of children living at the margins of their cities, and we are deeply concerned that when schools close it will have an outsized impact on large populations of economically insecure or unhoused families. Many of our brightbeam parents and students fall into this category and we want to do all we can to make sure a tough time for all of us isn’t an even tougher time for them.
[pullquote]As you make plans to keep your family out of harm’s way, we hope that you will keep less fortunate families in your plans.[/pullquote] One clear way to do that is to use your voice where possible to influence local leaders to ensure there is food for students who rely on school meals for daily nutrition, and there is care for them when their parents are not able to take consecutive days off of work.
We’ve collected some actions you can take. If you have other suggestions for how we can support children and families during this time, please add them to the comments at the bottom.
We believe the power of activism changes the world, and during this time it could potentially save lives.
Best,
Chris Stewart and the brightbeam team
An award-winning writer, speaker, and blogger, Chris Stewart is a relentless advocate for children and families. Based in outstate Minnesota, Chris is CEO of brightbeam, a nonprofit media group that runs campaigns to highlight policies and practices that support thriving kids. He was the founding Director of the African American Leadership Forum, was an elected member of the Minneapolis Board of Education, and founded and served as the CEO of Wayfinder Foundation. Above all, Chris is a serial parent, a Minecraft enthusiast, and an epic firestarter on Twitter where he has antagonized the best of them on the political left and right. You’ll often see Chris blogging at citizenstewart.com and “tweeting” under the name “Citizen Stewart.”
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