More Direct Ways To Act As An Ally!!
- bestfeelingevermov
- Jun 19, 2020
- 3 min read
Hey everyone!!
I hope you're all having a great week! So sorry that this week's Blog post is once again pretty late. I'm going to do my absolute to get back on track with tomorrow's usual Friday post! Anyway, let's get into this one!
Last week, I began a discussion of how non-Black people such as myself can act as effective allies to the Black community, especially during these incredibly challenging and stressful times. It is extremely important that we do all that we can to educate ourselves, listen, amplify the voices of the Black community, and TAKE ACTION to support the Black community in all that they are doing. We must use our own platforms, privilege, and influence to help those in the Black community make their own voices heard, and we must never rest until we see them receive the JUSTICE that they have always deserved!
In last week's post, I outlined some general ways that we can act as allies, such as by signing petitions, donating to organizations, texting/e-mailing legislators, reading books, and more. I shared a link here that contains a compilation of very important resources, and I will share it here again: blacklivesmatters.carrd.co. Please please please be sure to check this link out and take time to explore all that you can do through this website!
So now for this week's post, I would like to get a bit more specific, and highlight some very important resources that we can use right now to take action. These include petitions to sign, books to read, organizations to donate to, and Black content creators to follow on social media. Please take some time to explore each one of these suggestions!
Of course, it goes without saying that this is nowhere near an exhaustive list of these resources, and doesn't even scratch the surface of all that is out there that we must use to take action. Please view these suggestions as only a very brief, but important, starting point, and go from there to find more works, people, and ways of taking action that speak to you and make you feel empowered to make a change. Please be sure to get out there and take a look!!
Petitions To Sign:
Justice For George Floyd:
Justice For Breonna Taylor:
Justice For Ahmaud Arbery:
Justice For Rayshard Brooks:
Police De-Escalation Training:
Ban Rubber Bullets:
Books To Read:
Freedom Is A Constant Struggle by Angela Davis
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward
Beloved by Toni Morrison
How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Organizations To Donate To:
George Floyd Memorial Fund:
Protester Bail Funds:
Relief For Black-Owned Small Businesses:
Black Visions Collective:
NAACP Legal Defense Fund:
BLM Fund:
Black Content Creators To Follow On Instagram And Other Social Media:
(Handles are for their Instagram accounts)
Ava DuVernay: @ava
Rachel Elizabeth Cargle: @rachel.cargle
Zeba Blay: @zebablay
Yara Shahidi: @yarashahidi
Austin Channing Brown: @austinchanning
Michelle: @michellesaahene
Again, this is only a very brief starting point, please remember that!! We have A LOT of work to do and the road ahead of us is surely very long, but remember that we must keep doing this work and we cannot back down no matter what. Please never give up, and remember that you have a lot of power to make a difference every day! Thank you all so much for all that you do each and every day to make our world a better place.
I am sending so much love to each and every one of you!! Keep staying strong, and never give up!! Together, we will make it through this!! Sending lots of love and warm hugs!! Please keep being kind and compassionate to yourselves and to others, and remember that I am always here for whatever you need!! Stay strong, stay healthy, and stay amazing!!!! See you all soon... love you ALL!!!! :) <3
Your friend forever,
Adam Silverstein :) <3
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