An Introduction To "Ally-Ing"

Hey everyone!!

I hope that you're all doing well, despite the tough and challenging times. Sorry that this post, and this week's newsletter, are so late! I didn't want to have these sent out so late but I felt that it would be best to give myself some necessary time and space to process everything so that I could craft the best possible post that I could. I'm back now though, and posts should resume going up on their regular Fridays!

Obviously, we are all still dealing with the tragedy that is the death of George Floyd, as well as the uprising that it has brought with it. I touched on this briefly in my previous blog post when the topic was still relatively fresh, and I knew that I definitely needed to write more on the subject. That starts today, right here! Since this is such an extremely important topic, I will likely be writing multiple blog posts to cover my views on this... it works because another one is due out tomorrow (Friday!) so today's can be Part 1, while tomorrow's can then be Part 2. There may be even more, since I feel that we can never have too many conversations about what is going on and what we all can do to make a difference! So then, let's get right into it!!

I must start out by saying that my heart is still broken by this tragedy and that while I cannot begin to understand the unimaginable pain and grief that the Black community is experiencing right now, I am committed to standing in solidarity with them and my heart goes out. So with that said, I must start this off by clarifying that I am a white person. This means that I am in absolutely no ways an expert on, or fully knowledgeable about, the feelings or experiences of the Black community right now. Once again, I cannot begin to understand what those in the Black community are feeling, and I know that I will never be able to understand what this experience must be like.

The next thing that I must clarify is that there are far more important voices than mine that must be amplified right now, namely those in the Black community. In tomorrow's blog post, I will mainly focus on linking all of you to some great Black authors, bloggers, and social media accounts that I would like for you to take a look at to hear their perspectives and viewpoints... not just on what is going on right now, but on all kinds of topics. However, I do feel the need to write this mainly as a way of educating my fellow white people on how to act as allies in the most effective ways possible.

That brings us to our topic of allyship. The first thing that I would like to say here is that, while you may be used to using the word "ally" as a noun, I encourage you to reframe your thinking of the concept so that it is more of a verb. The reason or this is because we must understand that we can never fully "be" an ally, as we never "arrive" there - it is a constant process of growth and raising our awareness, and we must continue to commit ourselves to being educated in all ways so that we can grow into being better and better allies to the Black community. It is a constant, continuous process of learning and education, and we must commit ourselves to being in it for life!!

Okay, so, what are some ways that we can act as allies to the Black community, particularly in these extremely difficult times? Here are some very important things we all can do now! After this list, I have provided a link to a concise, well-organized website that has lots of great links to many of the things that I will be mentioning below. Be sure to check them out!!

• We must constantly be CHECKING OUR PRIVILEGE, and gaining more understanding of how our privilege as white people play a role in our lives and in our access to society, as well as how others view us.

• There are lots of petitions we can sign to help the members of the Black community where they need it most! A lot of very important ones are linked below! In addition, we must always keep texting and e-mailing those in power to let us know the actions that we need them to take! Templates for texts and e-mails to send can also be found at the link below.

• DONATE to Black Lives Matter and to other organizations that are dedicated to helping out the Black community! Links can be found below! Even if you don't have any money you can donate, there are also YouTube videos you can watch in support of the movement, that have ads which generate revenue that will be donated to these causes! Links to those can also

• CONSUME MEDIA AND LITERATURE that has been created by Black community members! This includes books, films, music, videos, and more, as well as social media pages and content created by the Black community!! There are so many great ones, search around and see what's out there!

• Promote Black voices, perspectives, and viewpoints of all sorts!! Use your platforms and your influence to help Black community members share their viewpoints and stories, and help them to amplify their voices!!

• Always be open to continuing to educate yourself about what is truly going on in our society right now so that you can make the kinds of change that we need to see. Remember how powerful your voice is, so use it to help those who need it most, and most importantly, to amplify their voices as well!!

Alright, so as mentioned, the website where you can find many links to the types of resources that I have described above is: http://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co. Please SHARE this link with as many people as you can and pass it along!! We must do all that we can and take action for justice now!! Thank you all so much for all that you do to help, today and every day... KEEP IT UP!!!!

Honestly, the outpouring of love and support that I have seen for the Black community over these past couple of weeks has been so inspiring, this is what we must keep up and never let up on. I hope that this post has provided you with some valuable resources that you will now use to continue to fight for what is right. In the next blog post, which should go up tomorrow, I will highlight even more and will also share links to some great Black content creators that I think you should follow. Please stay tuned for that!!

Thank you all so much for reading this very important post. I know times are still tough right now, but please keep staying strong and resilient the way you always are, and know that we will make it through this TOGETHER!!!! We can do this!!!! I am ALWAYS here for whatever it is that you need, please reach out to me at any time. Please keep choosing love, compassion, and empathy, and we will change the world together! Always keep being kind to yourselves and to ALL others!! Sending infinite love to all of you, and lots of hugs!! I will see you very soon!! :) <3

Your friend forever,

Adam Silverstein