Carmen Berkley
Carmen Berkley is married to Lee Anderson.
"A letter from the movement to the movement'
In September 2019 Carmen Berkley was one of 100 black leaders, many affiliated with Liberation Road who signed A letter from the movement to the movement defending Maurice Mitchell and Nelini Stamp of the Working Families Party for endorsing Elizabeth Warren instead of Bernie Sanders for the Democratic Party presidential nomination.
Statement of endorsement for Elizabeth Warren
Black Womxn for is an organizing collective of leaders, activists, artists, writers, and political strategists from across the country in the fight for black liberation. This statement reflects the views and intentions of the undersigned.
The last presidential election laid bare what many black women, gender non-conforming, and non-binary, and queer folk know deeply; that this nation embraces white supremacy and its evils, even at the expense of itself. It’s no wonder that even among the most committed activists there is a strong skepticism, aversion and even avoidance of participating in political systems.
Our endorsement comes not after lip service or political pandering, but from the hundreds of conversations with black women gnc/nb folks across the country, substantive discussions about policy and the power of grassroots organizing, and the opportunities and limitations of election politics. After gathering in fourteen cities across the united states and collecting hundreds of survey responses from self-identified progressive black women and gnc/nb folks, the overwhelming majority of excitement and support is for Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
We endorse Senator Warren with the full weight of accountability. Our endorsement is not a blanket approval of all of her acts, both past, present, and future but rather a firm and calculated understanding that should she fall short of her commitments to us and our communities she will be held to account.
The support for Senator Warren’s candidacy within our community is matched by an awareness that accountability requires commitment in words and actions. To that end, Senator Warren has agreed to the following asks from the Black Womxn for community:
Act with moral leadership: Sen. Warren has taken a stance against the white supremacy and misogyny that are woven into the fabric of this country. Policy change is not enough. Sen. Warren has committed to devoting money, staffing resources, and the bully pulpit towards rooting out the culture of white supremacy, exploitation-for-profit, and misogynoir in our schools, legislative language, federal hiring practices, medical institutions, arts and culture, and all areas of our society.
Changing the face of the federal government: there are hundreds of positions in the federal government that the senator will have the opportunity to appoint. In 2018, 93% of people running our government were white and 80% were white men. Senator warren has committed to fundamentally changing the internal and external face of the federal government by appointing more black women, especially trans and immigrant women, black men, indigenous people, people of color and disabled people. She has agreed to apply a race and gender equity impact analysis when hiring for her transition team and administration.
We are progressive black activists who are not beguiled by political theater. We are not ignorant to the violent legacy of politics. Each day, we thread a delicate needle of interacting with systems that have oppressed us while building collective power to shape the terrain so that our liberation is not but a dream, but an awakening.
We write this letter, not with the belief that sen. Elizabeth Warren is a savior, but a stalwart who can be challenged when necessary, moved when appropriate, and held accountable to a base led by black community leaders. We endorse her with the complete recognition that, upon her victory, the work is not over, nor is it just the beginning.
A warren victory ensures an environment in which black community leaders can better and more easily usher in those long-overdue societal transformations that move us closer to the liberation that we know is possible. If you agree, we invite you to sign this statement via the form link at the bottom of this page.
We know our power. We understand the opportunity and the stakes in this election. We hope to encourage others, especially black women and gnc folks, to be engaged in this important political moment.
Black Womxn for steering committee
- Carmen Berkley
- Jessica Byrd
- Nicole Carty
- Charlene Carruthers
- Anoa Changa
- Tracey Corder
- Rukia Lumumba
- Kayla Reed
- Leslie Mac - digital organizer, Black Womxn for
- Angela Peoples - director, Black Womxn for[1]
90s activists
Jotaka Eaddy October 8, 2010 ·
This is what it was it was all for!!! (Tag yourself if you were there) — with Aimee Castenell, Ana Aponte, Jackie Kendall, Jennifer Ann, Marvin Bing, Kirin Kennedy, Stefanie Brown James, Carmen Berkley, Matt Reents, Melinda Gibson, Kristen Kozlowski, Kirk Clay, Alethea Bonello, Kennie Gee, Sasha Hammond and Shelli Craver in Washington, District of Columbia.
2013 Reno conference - CLUW
Delegates to the 17th Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW Biennial Convention elected Connie Leak as their new president. She was elected on November 15th, 2013 in Reno, NV.
An afternoon session opened with a compelling panel entitled “Building an Intergenerational Labor Movement: What You Can Do as a CLUW Activist”. The panel was moderated by Carmen Berkley, the young, newly appointed Director of the AFL-CIO’s Department of Civil, Human and Women’s Rights who was most impressive as she kept the dialogue alive. She was joined by Dina Yarmus, chair of the Philadelphia Chapter’s Young Women’s Committee and Donchele Soper, a member of IBEW Local 1245 and Central California CLUW. They were joined by Carolyn Jacobson, Secretary-Treasurer of the Berger-Marks Foundation and longtime CLUW activist.
Comrades
Jon Levine is with Bill Fletcher, Jr. and 28 others - Richie Chevat, Francy Caprino, Ellie Gitelman Bagli, Mindy Gershon, Ajamu Dillahunt, Steve Backman, Dennis O'Neil, Martha Cameron, Glen Ford, Stan Goff, Sean Crimmins, Nat Turner Bender, Dave Blalock, James Carey, Larry Hamm, Sally Davidow, Bert Barao, Joe Fine, Bella August, Richard Cammarieri, Jeff Crosby, Sidney Brown, Carol Fine, Charles Bagli, Willa Cofield, Carmen Berkley.
September 14, 2016:
Thanks to Alfreda Coachman Daniels for sharing this 40 year old historic photo from a 1976 anti-busing rally in Boston. Shaun King, from whom Ms. Daniels shared this blast-from-the-past photo, commented "The American flag may represent freedom to you but it meant something else to this man."[2]
Inclusv
Inclusv Advisory Board members, as of May 12, 2018 included Carmen Berkley.