Black Lives Matter

Statement of Solidarity and Commitment to Action

We are a national network of families of children and youth with special health care needs and disabilities. Our children and families need multiple services and supports to live an optimal life. Unfortunately, Black families with special health care needs and disabilities experience unacceptable inequities in the access to and provision of care and services, and are disproportionately criminalized.

We see you. We hear you. We stand with you.

We are committed to ensuring that our healthcare systems, our communities, our nation and the world respect, include, and equally value the voices of Black children and families.

We stand in solidarity with those who condemn the murder of George Floyd and of so many other Black men, women, and children.

We stand united with those who call for an awakening in the collective conscious of our nation.

We stand united with those who demand the end of structural racism and join together to begin the work of dismantling it.

We stand united and committed to moving forward with those who work to bring about equal opportunities and supports for all children and families.

We will engage in these difficult and necessary conversations to promote change. We will listen and no longer be silent.

We will take action by sharing resources and urging others to join in efforts to address the impact of racism on children and youth with special health care needs and their families.

We will teach children about racial injustice and make space for them to share their lived experience, as they are the next generation of change agents.

In solidarity and commitment, the following members of the national network of Family-to-Family Health Information Centers (F2Fs) and Family Voices Affiliate Organizations (FVAOs) cosign this statement.