Wide Roots stands with you.

We stand with you.

We stand with our black friends and neighbors. We stand with those who have experienced discrimination, especially those who have experienced it to the point of feeling like their lives are in danger.

On May 25, a man by the name of George Floyd lost his life after being arrested, after attempting to use a counterfeit $20 bill in a store. One police officer placed his knee upon the man’s neck for over 8 minutes, the last 2 of which the man was unresponsive; other police officers stood by to prevent intervention from nearby observers.

George Floyd was a son, a nephew, a boyfriend, a brother, a cousin, and a friend.

Please, someone try to make the argument that the punishment fit the crime. I’m listening. I’ve seen and heard a lot of people talking past each other but I have yet to see this argument made. And perhaps there is a reason it hasn’t been made.

Unfortunately, this life lost is the latest in a series of similar events over recent years. 

Racism has no place in our society. None.

I support the peaceful protests seeking to change the system, to move us forward, to negate the effect of racism. I do not condone the rioting and the damage to honest small business owners. I can, however, try to listen, to understand the underlying anger that has led to this rioting.

I take this position that racism has no place in our society, and certainly don’t condone the anarchists who have some hand in fomenting the rioting. 

I can take this position while being supportive of the police officers who take on their vocation with the intent to protect and serve. I respect and value the job they do, while recognizing that there are unfortunately a few with conscious or unconscious biases combined with a sense of being at war. And also while recognizing that there are systemic drivers behind these incidents that must be discussed, with solutions debated. This has gone way too far.

Acknowledging that racism exists and saying the phrase “black lives matter” are not mutually exclusive with recognizing my own or anyone else’s struggles. They coexist.

I can’t be silent and expect other people to make the changes that need to be made. They aren’t being made. We keep seeing the same things over and over, and lives are being lost. 

Of all the values of Wide Roots, the fundamental value is inclusion. It is about demystifying the subject of wine and making it approachable to a broader population. More importantly, it recognizes that as different as we can be from one another, we have much in common, and we have much to celebrate. We enjoy music, we enjoy our friends and family, we enjoy breaking bread together, and in some cases we enjoy wine together. We see the humanity in one another.

In deciding whether or not to publicly make this stand, this was the tipping point. Because I can’t be true to the values of Wide Roots without publicly providing a position in something so important. Because the impact of racism is so much bigger than whether my fledgling business succeeds. 

Because I want the winemakers I represent to know who I am and what my values are. Same for wholesale, retail, and restaurant partners. And the same for consumers, for whom I seek to break down intimidation of a different (albeit much less important) kind. 

Too much of our discourse tries to force us into a black or white position, or a red or blue position. This is all part of “talking past” each other rather than listening. We all need to do a better job of listening. Starting with me. I want to be a constructive voice in how we make this better. But I cannot accept that racism leads to the deaths of innocent people, that neighbors and friends who are black fear for their lives.

Because when we see beyond the false choices, when we see that there is so much color in the world beyond black and white, and red and blue, and purple and yellow and green and orange, then we see beauty.