Hey Changemakers, 

We're connected. All of us. We can't help it. That a virus spread so quickly between us is a reminder that we cannot escape one other, even though sometimes this year we've probably wanted to :)

We started our business to make social and environmental impact in Flint, Michigan after seeing the devastating effects of the Flint Water Crisis on a community our government has treated like a sacrifice zone. We wanted to upcycle single-use plastic and bring a new manufacturing legacy to the city of Flint while also disrupting the the generally dirty, wasteful, and inequitable way people make eyewear. We exist to give you a better choice, but we're a small team, and we're working our way through 2020 just like you are. Sometimes we're good at it...and sometimes we're a slow-motion trainwreck. Like you, we haven't just survived the virus, quarantines, and virtual-schooling. Our team has been through the death of loved ones as well as the birth of new babies. We've also confronted, in a very real way and for the first time as a team, our own racism and privilege. It's not that we're proud of these things; in some cases, it's actually quite the opposite. It's that like you, we're still here. We've stood up for each other when some of us (quite literally) couldn't. And we know for sure that we will, with your help, change the industry because we will do it together. We also know that we're going to need every ounce of our collective strength to tackle the problems we're facing as a species.  

Climate change is real. We have eight years to reverse the damage we've done so far to the planet.

The trash crisis is real. In our lifetimes, the oceans could be more plastic by weight than fish unless we do something.

These problems disproportionately affect poor black and brown communities, and the burden of solving them, as it always has, most often falls to women. 

The industry we're in is dirty and inequitable. We exist to give you a better choice, but we cannot do it alone. We're going to need somebody to stand up for us from time to time. 

For these reasons, we're endorsing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to be our next president and vice president of the United States. Joe and Kamala share our belief in unity over fear. They share our belief that climate change and the trash crisis are existential threats to our species, and they've promised to take action against polluters who poison our air, our oceans, and our children. More than anything though, they remind us that true strength is a call to decency, forgiveness, and service to one another.

We look forward to closing the chapter on the last four years. But we also recognize that the time has come, as August Wilson said, to "confront the dark parts of ourselves and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness." 

So vote NOW. But remember that November 3 is just the beginning. We have work to do, and it begins November 4.

Joy & Ease, 
Genusee, Day Owl, First Mile, Scout Books, and Welly Bottle Teams