About Us
SURJ Atlanta works to dismantle systemic white supremacy by moving people from compassion to action. We prepare our members to advocate for racial justice in their everyday lives and show up for direct actions led by people of color (PoC). Guided by our accountability to PoC-led organizations, we are building a multi-racial majority for racial justice by addressing our relative positions of privilege, processing bias, and challenging manifestations of white supremacy – both explicit and implicit – within our own communities.
Our Mission
Following the leadership of Black, Indigenous, People of Color-led organizations, continuously working to end white support for white supremacy through direct action and education.
Take Action
Within the context of a multiracial movement we work to end white support for white supremacy through:
Education: Helping people develop a better understanding of white supremacy and how to interrupt systems of oppression in our daily lives.
Policy change: ending white supremacist policies and legislation.
Amplification of oppressed voices: showing up for actions, sharing their words and thoughts, and trusting in their lived experiences.
Chapter Values
Growth and Change - Committing to a continual re-examination process of educating ourselves and other persons with privilege, translating learning into actionable and accountable change. Practices: examining, listening, questioning, unlearning, relearning, recentering.
Accountability - Individually and organizationally, we are open about our decision-making process, we accept responsibility for our actions, and agree to be called in when appropriate. Practices: appropriate transparency within the chapter and community, honesty, respectful conflict resolution.
Compassion - Maintaining an empathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it. Whether we are providing feedback to each other, or working toward broader change within the larger community, we focus on constructive structural criticism and restorative justice, recognizing that individual transformation is crucial for structural change. Practices: respecting, maintaining transparency, seek first to understand.
Collective Liberation - We set aside our individual egos to center and follow the leadership of our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color-Led partner organizations by building strong relationships, calling attention to their causes, and engaging in collective action. Practices: organizing, seeking guidance, anti-racism, humility, relationship building.
For more, see SURJ National’s list of values.
Membership
SURJ Atlanta members believe in our membership accountability agreement. An active member:
Has attended orientation
Supports at least one committee, as determined by the committee chair
Attends monthly general body meetings, as they are able
Makes an annual donation to a BIPOC-led organization on a sliding scale
Sliding scale - Can you afford to buy coffee/tea/smoothie/etc from a shop
Every day? Donate $150 (this covers dues for our members who are in lower tiers)
Most days? Donate $100 (this covers dues for our members who are in lower tiers)
Every few days? Donate $75
Once a week? Donate $50
Once a month? Donate $25
Never - your membership is covered by other members and we are happy to have you
Please note: you do not need to be a member to participate in SURJ Atlanta programming such as Action Hour or our workshops! Non-members are welcome to join us in these spaces.
Top image photo credit: Fibonacci Blue.