Looking Back at 2025 and Looking Forward to 2026

As we reflect on the past year, we are grateful for a community that believes in the power of education, dialogue, and collective action to advance racial justice, equality, and fair opportunity for all.

At SDARJ our work is rooted in a simple but powerful idea: informed communities are empowered communities. With your support, we brought people together to learn, connect, and take meaningful steps toward positive change.

Because of members and donors like you, in 2025 we were able to:

• Host social justice-oriented town halls and events with attendance of 1500 people in 2025
• Our legislative Advocacy committee pushed for voting rights and other legislative reforms in Delaware
• Our Returning Citizens committee distributed “dignity backpacks” to help people returning from Delaware prisons and lobbied for criminal justice reform in Dover.
• Printed and distributed 70,000 copies of Black Voices quarterly newsmagazine in 2025
• Convened monthly book and film discussions in 2025 and in cooperation with the Rehoboth Film Society hosted the area’s only Black Film festival.
• Gave scholarships and academic recognition to deserving Black students in Sussex County.
• Provided free 6-week seminars designed to enhance racial understanding and equip people to better fight racism.
• Highlighted key social justice issues in Sussex County including bias in local fire departments, educational disparities, the need to continue DEI (diversity equity and inclusion) programs.
• Completed a project called “Addressing the Silences” with the John Dicksenson Plantation to provide a more accurate picture of the lives of enslaved people at the plantation.
• As a voice for social justice, SDARJ and its work were cited over 30 times in Delaware media.
• In 2025 SDARJ sent out over 200,000 emails including e-newsletters and announcements in 2025 highlighting social justice events and causes.

Help support SDARJ and the over 100 people who have served as volunteers to work for social justice in 2025.

Join us as we work to fight racism in Sussex County and Delaware by contributing financially to our work.

Thank you for helping to make a difference in the fight against racism in the year ahead.