City of Shoreline stands for undoing racism, addressing inequality, and making change

Pride flag flies at Shoreline City Hall
Photo by Steven H. Robinson

From the City of Shoreline

June is Pride month. It is a time to celebrate the beginning of the civil rights movement for the LGBTQ+ community and the many contributions gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other identifying individuals have made in the world.

On June 1, the City of Shoreline raised the Pride flag at City Hall and it will fly all month long. 

We encourage everyone to take some time this month to learn more about the LGBTQ+ community and find ways to honor their contributions.

Statement on the Death of George Floyd

Unfortunately, the beginning of Pride Month comes at a time when we are starkly reminded of the continued struggle against racism in this country. 

For more than four hundred years, Black people in this country have been subjected to violent oppression through individual and systemic racism. 

The death of George Floyd, a Black man living in Minneapolis, at the hands of a white police officer was not an isolated incident, but one more example of the violent struggle Black people face on a daily basis.

Many people have been shocked by the unrest seen in cities across the country as a result of the death of George Floyd. Amidst the many peaceful demonstrations, some individuals have chosen to cause harm. 

However, we recognize that rage is rooted in generations of trauma, loss, and dehumanization that Black people have endured and then must relive every time another innocent life is lost. 

We encourage individuals to speak out against this injustice, and we support the request of George Floyd’s family for people to protest peacefully and not engage in destructive actions. Let us work together to address all of the ways that systemic racism works to oppress people of color.

We all have a responsibility to undo racism, address inequality, and make change. Over the past few years, Shoreline City staff members have been engaged in training to help understand how racism affects us all and results in inequitable treatment and outcomes for communities of color across this country.

We are learning to recognize the many ways that institutions serve to maintain those inequities so that we can begin to develop strategies to undo policies and practices that perpetuate racism.

The Shoreline Police Department knows they must continually work to gain and maintain the trust of the community and that is why they emphasize training on de-escalation techniques and recognizing implicit bias.