On Monday, twenty Washington groups led by Washington CAN, a statewide grassroots lobbying organization, delivered a legislative report card to state lawmakers in Olympia. The tally of grades didn’t look too good; nine representatives from the 13th, 14th and 15th districts of Washington–who all happen to be Republicans, imagine that–received F’s for their performance on 34 bills that most affect people of color in Washington state. From the collection of people’s voices in the video:

Everything in this country is about race, let’s face it. I think it informs…much of what goes on in the country, and it’s something we don’t talk about enough. Racism isn’t just a one-on-one interaction, it’s systemic. We know that Black people are always in the highest numbers of unemployment, we know that Latinos and Native Americans are always in the highest numbers of uninsured. So we have to take that into consideration when we talk to our legislators. Do not be afraid. Put it out there. Let’s face race together.

Be sure to check Senator Jim Honeyford’s dumbfounded reply when he’s told he’s been given a failing grade this year. Idaho also released a similar racial equity legislative report card on Monday. The research and grading methodology for the report cards was supplied by our mother organization and ColorLines’ publisher, the Applied Research Center.