Ways to Be An Ally & Support The Black Lives Matter Movement Aggregated from materials and work by @mireillecharper
Be a non-optical ally and work to be actively anti-racist Optical allyship “only services the surface level to platform the ‘ally’. It makes a statement but doesn’t go beneath the surface and is not aimed at breaking away from the systems of power that oppress”. – Latham Thomas
Check in on your black friends, family, partners, loved ones and colleagues “This is an emotional and traumatic time for the community and checking in means more than you can imagine. Ask how you can provide support.”
Be prepared to do the lifetime work of learning about systemic racism Doing the hard work to come to terms with your own privilege is not easy work but is essential, necessary and a privilege in and of itself to be able to educate oneself about racism versus experiencing racism.
Read up on antiracist works It is not enough to dislike racism, we need to work towards antiracism through engaging in tough conversations, active learning and unlearning and using our voices to counter injustice. A list of resources is provided at the end of this handout.
Avoid sharing content that is traumatic on social media This can be traumatic, triggering and further dehumanizes black people.
Donate to funds and support initiatives that help black people including: ⋅ Campaign Zero ⋅ Color of Change ⋅ Equal Justice Initiative ⋅ George Floyd Memorial Fund ⋅ NAACP Legal Defense Fund ⋅ National Bail Fund Network ⋅ The Bail Project ⋅ The Minnesota Freedom Fund ⋅ Reclaim the Block
Do not centre this narrative around yourself It is powerful and important to relate and empathize, but now is not the time to insert personal experiences into a narrative that isn’t about you. This is harmful and chips away at the severity of this situation. “Leave your ego”.
Keep supporting after the outrage It should not take an act of brutality or the virality of a situation to suddenly show support. We need to keep supporting black media, black initiatives, charitable organizations and continuing the work after the attention has died down.
RESOURCES AT THE DORM We are here for you. Please know that you can contact your primary clinician at any time for extra support or anything else you may need.
RESOURCES FOR CONTINUED EDUCATION Books Between The World And Me Ta-Nehisi Coates
How To Be An Antiracist Ibram X. Kendi
Just Mercy Bryan Stevenson
Me and White Supremacy Layla Saad
So You Want To Talk About Race Ijeoma Oluo
The New Jim Crow Robin DiAngelo, PhD
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard For White People To Talk About Race Robin DiAngelo
Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race Reni Eddo-Lodge
Films/Documentaries and Shows
Netflix Amazon Prime 13th Just Mercy Ava DuVernay Destin Daniel Cretton
American Son Rent Kenny Leon Black Power Mixtape: 1967–1975
Dear White People Clemency Justin Simien Chinonye Chukwu
See You Yesterday Fruitvale Station Stefon Bristol Ryan Coogler
When They See Us Ava DuVernay I Am Not Your Negro James Baldwin documentary Hulu Selma If Beale Street Could Talk Ava DuVernay Barry Jenkins The Black Panthers: Vanguard of The Hate U Give the Revolution George Tillman Jr.
Organizations/Individuals To Follow The Leadership Conference On Antiracist Research & Policy Center Civil Rights & Human Rights Podcasts To Subscribe To Black Lives Matter @blklivesmatter 1619 by New York Times @colorofchange About Race Ibrahim X. Kendi @ibramxk Code Switch by NPR Layla Saad @laylafsaad
Rachel Cargle @rachel.cargle And this is just the beginning. This is pulled Reni Eddo-Lodge @renieddolodge from a large, aggregated list of resources The Great Unlearn @thegreatunlearn that have been widely shared and has been compiled by Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein – see the full version here