Supporting racial equality and justice: A note from Bob Gadaleta, President of the Hiscox Foundation USA

**Hiscox Foundation USA is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that supports a range of social and humanitarian initiatives that are funded by an annual donation from Hiscox USA. Bob Gadaleta was recently named the Foundation’s president.**

Over the past several weeks, many of my colleagues and I have expressed deep sadness and outrage over the death of George Floyd and countless others. There is one thing we all have in common at Hiscox - we stand for racial equality and justice and we firmly believe that there is no place in our society for racism, injustice, hate or violence.

Hiscox USA is committed to cultivating a diverse and inclusive workforce, including a safe and inclusive environment for all employees and partners. To facilitate an inclusive work environment, we will continue to support our employee networks, encourage learning whenever possible and celebrate employees from diverse backgrounds.

Having recently been named the new President of the Hiscox Foundation USA, I welcomed the opportunity to work with our dedicated Board to see what we could do to help support the social change that needs to happen. In consultation with Hiscox USA’s Pan-African Employee Network, we identified a couple of organizations that have been making incredible strides toward racial equality and justice.
 
To that end, the Hiscox Foundation USA is donating $100,000 each to the Equal Justice Initiative and National CARES Mentoring Movement. Here’s a little more information on both of these organizations: 

• The Equal Justice Initiative is committed to ending mass incarceration, challenging racial and economic injustice, and changing the narrative about race in America by providing legal representation to people who have been illegally convicted, unfairly sentenced, or abused in state jails and prisons. You can learn more here.
• The National CARES Mentoring Movement is dedicated to alleviating intergenerational poverty among African Americans by offering Black children in low-income families and unstable communities the social, emotional, and academic support they need to realize their potential and succeed in college or vocational training programs and 21st century careers. You can learn more here.    

The Hiscox Foundation USA has worked to achieve great things over the years, and I look forward to continuing all of the inspiring work that has been done to improve the quality of life for disadvantaged and vulnerable members of society. I thank Russ Findlay, Group Chief Marketing Officer and our prior President, for leaving me with a healthy and strong foundation and board of directors in order to continue the great work already done.

There is still much more work to be done, as bringing about change will be a marathon rather than a sprint. Hiscox is committed to this journey and I look forward to being a part of the change. 
 
#WeStandTogether