Over the last week I have been sad to see some quilters are squabbling online about politics vs human rights issues. The topic of racial discrimination, which is a human rights and moral issue, has been politicized and is being banned from some social media platforms for that reason. I wrote about this a few weeks ago, but let me say it again.
There is no room in our country or in this quilt industry for racial injustice, and it is time for all of us to join together under the banner of HUMANITY. Stop allowing others to politicize what is even more foundational – human rights and racial justice are moral and ethical issues. This has an even greater weight than politics. Call it the Golden Rule, Karma, or just plain and simple Doing-The-Right-Thing. Don’t let someone stop you from speaking the truth or protecting someone who is being attacked because of their race.
One of the biggest trends in art…and quilting…is Activism for topics such as Environmental Conservation, Human Rights, Diversity and Racial Injustice. There are those who try to get us to stop talking about this, but there is a wave of change and TRUTH that is washing over this land and we will all feel better if we can ride this wave together and be a part of the change that is coming. Humanity is trying to evolve. I am convinced of this. Be a part of this Evolution. It starts with LOVE.
Now back to our regular programming.
The last two days I’ve been a facilitator in the Asian-Pacific color trend forecasting event for the Color Marketing Group. I participated in a North American forecasting event last month. We are attempting to predict what the world will be like 2 years from now. Crazy, huh? This weekend I listened to product designers in China, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and Australia…and we hammered out a vision that will guide eQuilter and other CMG members as we navigate these choppy waters for the next year or two.
Collaboration and Resiliency are two key concepts…i.e. those who want to do everything the same old way, and those who are rigidly inflexible, will have the hardest time. Just keep breathing…we are all going to get to the other side of this together. Well, most of us will get to the other side. I just heard about a quilt shop owner in our area who survived the virus, and we know several families who have lost loved ones now, so this is clearly not a time for magical thinking.
As part of our guidelines to keep our staff safe, we are not seeing any sales reps in-person this quarter, or until we feel it is safe. We are still placing orders for future shipments, but we are doing so by Zoom online appointments, or having artwork dropped off so we can write the orders ourselves. I will not be attending Houston Quilt Market or Quilt Festival. Just so you know, we are all still following strict safety protocols in our office and warehouse. We are still wearing masks, practicing social distancing, disinfecting surfaces, and washing hands. This is for our staff, our families, and for YOU – our customers.
We are also donating personally and as a business, to organizations who are supporting those affected by recent and ongoing racial injustice issues. If you have been a customer for awhile, you already know about our commitment to these kind of human rights topics through our charity program, which has donated almost $1.7 million over 21 years.
It was just announced that the Tokyo Quilt Festival for Jan 2021 has been cancelled, so the photos I took a few months ago in Japan are even more precious…
sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul
