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New Virginia Majority Statement on Postponement of MLK Advocacy Day

New Virginia Majority
January 17, 2020

Richmond, VA - Nothing is more important than the health and safety of our members.

Based on information concerning armed racist militias, the militarization of the Capitol area, and the likely dispersal of many people with guns, we have decided to postpone our annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. advocacy day. History has shown us that Black and Brown people are the targets of many of these militarized groups, fearful of a more inclusive Virginia.

Our team did an outstanding job developing protocols and recruiting legal observers and marshals. However, we cannot protect our people from individuals committed to acts of violence. Our thirteen years of work have begun the transformation of our state and our decision to postpone will not keep us from continuing to advocate for a Virginia that works for all of us. We are beginning to win on critical issues - criminal justice reform, expanding democracy, immigrant rights, women’s and workers’ rights, and more.

Rest assured we will continue to make our voices known through the halls of the Capitol, and we look forward to organizing many more opportunities for our members to engage with their elected leaders.

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New Virginia Majority builds power in working-class communities of color, in immigrant communities, among LGBTQ people, women, youth, and progressives across the Commonwealth. We organize for racial and economic justice through large-scale political education, mobilization, and advocacy around dozens of issues. We fight for a Virginia that is just, democratic, and environmentally sustainable.