About Us
Who we are
We are SURJ members in Durham, Chatham, and Orange Counties — neighbors, community members, and organizers committed to racial and economic justice in the Eno River area. We are part of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ), a national network that brings hundreds of thousands of white people into the work toward a just, vibrant future where everyone thrives.
Our group came together in 2025, and we have grown exponentially since.
Strategic racism has long been used to divide communities. At SURJ, we believe there's a better path: one where people of all races recognize our shared interests and work together toward a more just and equitable society. SURJ has been building this kind of multiracial people power alongside communities of color since 2009. When people show up in real, accountable, community-rooted ways — things change.
While we are not a formal SURJ chapter, we are members of the national SURJ network who have come together locally to do this work. We follow SURJ's values and principles, participate in national campaigns, and build relationships with organizations led by people of color in our region.
Our values
We are guided by SURJ's national principles, which include:
Centering Black leadership and the leadership of people of color
Building multiracial power rooted in shared interest — not charity or guilt
Doing the long-term, relational work of organizing in our communities
Accountability to the broader movement for racial and economic justice
Commitment to learning, growth, and honest internal reflection
Read SURJ's full values and principles → surj.org/about/our-values
Our area
We organize in Durham, Chatham, and Orange Counties of North Carolina — the communities surrounding the Eno River in the NC Research Triangle region, including Durham, Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Pittsboro, and surrounding areas.