We Stand With Our Brothers and Sisters in the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Stamford, Conn. June 5, 2020
Needless to say, the horrifically disturbing hate crimes of the last week and the lack of compassionate leadership from the White House is the face of justified national outrage has taken a very heavy toll on all of us. The darkness around the brutal murder of George Floyd, as well as the recent killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and others, has shone a blinding light on the pervasive racial injustice for Black Americans in the U.S. that many of us have been fighting to eradicate for a very long time. Two months ago, on a podcast, in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, I had stated that the real virus in America was racial and economic injustice, yet I never thought it would be literally a race to the bottom like this. For over three decades, my family and I have passionately fought for social justice causes and ahve been at the forefront, advocating for civil right issues, both inside and outside the Black American community. However, this week with a heavy heart, it seems like this long journey has take a winding road backward.
Call me an idealist, but I founded Saffron Road as a socially responsible enterprise, deploying world cuisines to compassionately inspire and inclusively connect diverse cultures, bridging languages, religions, and races together for the betterment of humanity. Our Team does not tolerate any sort of discrimination of any kind: racism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, or homophobia. Now more than ever, it is paramount that we build these compassionate bridges, We filly support the Black Live Matter Movement. President John F. Kennedy once warned that "those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable."
We hear loud and clear the cries of anger and feel the pain and suffering the Black American community had endured with the boot at their necks for generations of injustice. At Saffron Road, we will continue to do our part to create sage spaces for us to have open dialogues, to nurture compassion and build harmony as a values-based business. We must also acknowledge the economic plight of the Black American community as recently reported by Bloomberg, that the average Black American household has one-tenth the income of white families and that the coronavirus pandemic is killing black folks at 2.4 times white people. These are facts-not fantasy. Let's all try and stay open minded, have thoughtful dialogues, and challenge our assumptions. Let's deeply reflect on our common universal values as Americans – dedicated to the fundamental principles of justice, equality and respect that is embodied in our Declaration of Independence and Constitution.
Now is the time for action. In the upcoming weeks, we plan to mobilize our efforts in furtherance of our commitment to support Black American communities, to fight the good fight against systemic anti-Black racism. We will do this in a multifaceted manner – by initially donating to organizations such as the Black Lives Matter Fund and The Bail Project; volunteering in our communities with local efforts to combat racism; joining peaceful demonstrations; and supporting get-out-the-vote campaigns in the upcoming elections.
Our Journey to Better has never been more vital than the urgency of this movement. We are blessed that so many of you have also been venturing on this with us. In solidarity, together we hope to build a more loving, caring, and respectful world. We welcome you to join us – the hard work is just starting.
Faithfully,
Adnan Durrani
