I’m writing to you in a moment where many in our community are experiencing ongoing waves of pain and grief. I hope you are reaching for the abundance of Jewish resources being shared to help navigate the emotion, suffering, and uncertainty of this moment.

On October 6th, before we received the news from Israel and Palestine, we released a video that I have been turning to for grounding and a taste of the freedom and liberation we are fighting for.

It’s the latest episode of Your Safety Is My Safety, Bend the Arc’s series highlighting visions of community safety beyond the limits of our fears, featuring Dr. Imani Romney-Rosa Chapman. 

The video plays differently now than it did when it was released. Still, her message resonates with me. Imani recounts a history in the United States of oppression and “insisting that the least of us fight one another for what is left.”

But Imani still sees hope. “These patterns are reversible. Thriving is possible. There is enough.”

We all value safety, as individuals and as communities. And while there isn’t only one possible vision of safety for our future — as our series illustrates, through its many voices — returning to our collective visions, together, offers us a way forward. As we experience fear and pain today, we must look to the promise of liberation on the other side. It’s why we do the work that we do. To build a country, and a community, where all are safe and free.

When it feels right, I invite you to watch Imani’s episode with me and revisit all of the episodes of Your Safety Is My Safety. As you watch the series, think about how your own vision of safety might fit into our collective vision. And if you find a piece of your vision does not fit, are there other parts that do?

Towards our shared, liberated future,

Enzi Tanner
National Organizer, Bend the Arc

PS: You can also watch and share Imani’s episode on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, and TikTok.