#BLACKLIVESMATTER
If you haven’t heard, protests and marches are taking place around the world this week in response to the police murder of George Floyd in the US (read more here), the suspicious death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet in Canada (read more here), and police violence against Black people in general.
The only response I have is this: I cannot stand for ending violence against women if I do not also stand for ending violence against all marginalized and oppressed individuals. Black. Lives. Matter. Period.
I will attend upcoming Ottawa-based marches organized and supported by the Black community, and I will continue to do the work of educating myself on anti-racism and the ways in which I can support an end to inequality and oppression. Whatever form YOUR protest against inequality and oppression looks like, I encourage you to DO IT.
Here’s a starting list of resources and organizations (in no specific order) compiled by others that may help you get started. Consider supporting the organizations with a contribution if you can. As I am not an expert on anti-racism work, I encourage you to suggest other resources in the comments below!
RESOURCES:
- BlackLivesMatter.com Toolkits:
https://blacklivesmatter.com/resources/ - Concrete ways you can support the #BlackLivesMatter movement:
https://www.facebook.com/nicole.stamp/posts/10158793642489341 - Anti-Racism Resources:
http://bit.ly/ANTIRACISMRESOURCES - Anti-Racism For Beginners:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1S5uckFHCA_XZkxG0Zg5U4GQGbY_RklZARwu43fqJH0E/preview?pru=AAABcporlxo*FqaB_HPR5a4AkO71ih5rNw - Anti-racism reading list:
https://chipublib.bibliocommons.com/list/share/204842963/1357692923 - CBC’s Adrian Harewood’s interview with Desmond Cole, activist, journalist and author, about his new book The Skin We’re In: A Year of Black Resistance and Power:
cbc.ca/player/play/1711841859518 - Article about police violence in Canada (and interview with Desmond Cole):
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/the-current-for-june-1-2020-1.5592953/police-brutality-continually-treated-like-a-one-off-in-canada-says-desmond-cole-1.5592954 - Giant resource list of books and articles to read, Instagram accounts to follow, Podcasts to listen to, etc.:
https://zoella.co.uk/2020/06/01/black-lives-matter-resources/ - And another big resource (more US-specific):
https://movableink.com/blog/blmresources/?fbclid=IwAR1GAIGlp1xqLIsYwlmxvepNipSibDLpFssitzNdGwTWlisaU9H8WM2eMZY - List of US-based organizations and projects to learn more about:
https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/resources-in-the-fight-against-police-brutality-and-systemic-racism/ - Mapping Police Violence in America:
https://mappingpoliceviolence.org/ - How Structural Racism is Linked to Higher Rates of Police Violence:
https://www.citylab.com/equity/2018/02/the-role-of-structural-racism-in-police-violence/553340/
- Black Youth Helpline:
https://blackyouth.ca/ - Black Lives Matter Toronto:
https://blacklivesmatter.ca/ and https://www.facebook.com/blacklivesmatterTO/ - Black Lives Matter Montreal:
https://www.facebook.com/blmmontreal/ - Black Lives Matter Vancouver:
https://blacklivesmattervancouver.com/ - Federation of Black Canadians:
https://fbcfcn.ca/ - Afrobiz: https://www.afrobiz.ca/
Sincerely,
Nicole Bedford