Paws for a Cause Miami Statement

Message from the President:

Black Lives Matter. 

This is a statement that I have not made soon enough and for the people that have been hurt or disappointed by my silence, I am deeply sorry. I originally refrained from making a statement because I believed that Paws for a Cause Miami could not say anything that had not been said by someone else more impactfully. I did not think that it was my place to speak up on this issue and did not realize what I was neglecting with my silence. After hearing the call from our members for real action, open conversations with many of you, and meeting with my executive team, I have realized that I and Paws for a Cause Miami can no longer be silent.

Paws for a Cause Miami tolerates no act of injustice, discrimination, or hate towards our members or any person, especially those in the Black community. We stand in solidarity with them and support their fight against systemic oppression and racial injustice. We cannot continue to remain silent on this issue any longer if we want to uphold our mission of being a voice for the voiceless and supporting those who are marginalized or discriminated against.

The recent events, including the murder of George Floyd, the racist words and actions of Miami Faculty and Students, and the continued brutality by police officers have made us realized that we all need to do better. While recognizing the problems in the world, we also must recognize the lack of diversity and failure in inclusivity within Paws for a Cause Miami itself. We recognize the socio-economic gap that prevents people from volunteer puppy raising. This gap unfortunately disproportionately affects minority communities and can be a deterrent from volunteering, just one factor leading to a lack of diversity in puppy raising.

We are working to lessen this gap over my term as president and set forward positive change that will affect the organization for many years to come. I do not want to make a statement just with empty words, so here is what we are doing to make real change. Over the summer, I will be working with the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion, ASG Senators, and SEAL Ambassadors to work on generating a plan to reach out to people in minority communities and let them know the resources that we have to help them be successful in our organization. The exec team and I will also be working with the Wilks Institute to participate in a leadership workshop to better understand what our organization can do better to be the inclusive space that we all want it to be. Finally, we will be allocating more ASG funding to the support of our fosters and sitters, especially those who would not be able to participate without our support.

The events happening today have opened everyone’s eyes to what we need to do better, and I have realized Paws for a Cause Miami is not immune to that call for change. Rest assured, there will be real change in the organization, and I hope that we can set a positive precedent for all the members to follow. We maintain our obligation to have a diverse and inclusive organization. I thank everyone who has helped push this change and I cannot wait to serve you as your president over the next year.

Stay Golden,

Nathan Phillips (President) and the Paws for a Cause Miami Team