I can't breathe.

By Mark Mason, CFO May 29, 2020 06:00 PM

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

I can't breathe.

Those words were George Floyd's last. In a video recorded by a bystander, he can be heard saying them, pleading for his life, 10 times. Maybe more. While a police officer kneeled on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. While three other officers stood by and WATCHED.

Like many of you, I have watched that video of his death with a combination of horror, disgust and anger. And over subsequent nights, I have watched that anger spill out onto the streets of Minneapolis and many other American cities with devastating consequences. I have debated whether I should speak out. But after some emotional conversations with my family earlier this week, I realized I had to.

In fact, we all need to.

Even though I'm the CFO of a global bank, the killings of George Floyd in Minnesota, Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia and Breonna Taylor in Kentucky are reminders of the dangers Black Americans like me face in living our daily lives. Despite the progress the United States has made, Black Americans are too often denied basic privileges that others take for granted. I am not talking about the privileges of wealth, education or job opportunities. I'm talking about fundamental human and civil rights and the dignity and respect that comes with them. I'm talking about something as mundane as going for a jog.

Racism continues to be at the root of so much pain and ugliness in our society – from the streets of Minneapolis to the disparities inflicted by COVID-19. As long as that's true, America's twin ideals of freedom and equality will remain out of reach.

I'm proud to work at Citi, an organization that cherishes diversity and inclusion and is willing to stand up for those values when they are threatened, whether it's working to close the gender pay gap in our industry or calling out the violence of white supremacists in Charlottesville.

These systemic problems will not go away until we confront them head on. So we must continue to speak up and speak out whenever we witness hatred, racism or injustice. I know I will – and I hope you will too.

In addition to speaking out and in an effort to aid in the fight to address these issues, my wife and I have decided to make donations to three organizations fighting injustice and inequality -- NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Advancement Project, and Color of Change.

I hope you will join us.

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