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By Faith Nguyen, Copy Editor
In the midst of a nationwide quarantine, hidden behind a plethora of black posts and story chains, lies a movement alive long before the current generations.
The demand for change is famously led with the chant “Black Lives Matters,” after an organization of the same name was founded in 2013 in response to Trayvon Martin’s murder.
The official mission statement found on the BLM website is “to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.” Protesting is one of the main ways to fight for the cause, but if you are unable to take to the streets, there are many other effective ways to get involved.
Educate Yourself
While donating and signing petitions are helpful regardless of the individual’s intentions, understanding the magnitude of the situation is important to maximize the effect of action. Posting a black screen in solidarity of the movement and reposting story chains is an example of “performative activism.” In other words, these are often ineffective actions taken for the appearance of unity rather than the want for results. While Instagram trends die quickly, the demand for justice remains alive until changes are made. What better way to start that change than by educating yourself?
Here is a list of (non exhaustive) resources to start you on your path:
Donate
One of the most effective ways to support the movement is to donate. Donations can generally be broken up into two categories: helping individuals, and helping the overall cause.
Donations used to help individuals include anything that would directly contribute to one person affected by the racial injustice. This would include funds such as the George Floyd Memorial Fund.
A donation used to help the BLM cause is as implied: a contribution to progress the movement. An example of this would be Campaign Zero, an organization dedicated to outlining/researching policy solutions to end police brutality.
More places to donate can be found at https://nymag.com/strategist/article/where-to-donate-for-black-lives-matter.html
Sign Petitions
One of the easiest ways to contribute is to sign online petitions. While one individual voice may be silenced in the face of oppression, a combined effort to demand change is much more likely to be heard. By signing petitions, one creates a louder voice that cannot be ignored.
A recent example of this is the “Justice for George Floyd” petition found on change.org. With over 16 million signers, the collective aim is to “reach the attention of Mayor Jacob Frey and DA Mike Freeman to beg to have the officers involved in this disgusting situation fired and for charges to be filed immediately.” Utilize your voice for the ones that have been silenced.
More petitions can be found at https://thelatch.com.au/petitions-you-can-sign-to-support-black-lives-matter/
Email/Text/Call
Similar to signing petitions, emailing/texting/calling an official are a couple of ways to demand change as an individual. By expressing your noncompliance with the current situation to an official, you are increasing the chance of that official taking action.
While one phone call or email may not be effective, if many individuals send in their dissatisfaction, the idea of a “louder voice” similar to that of a protest or petition applies. An example of this would be calling County Attorney Michael Freeman, the local prosecutor involved in George Floyd’s murder.
If you need guidance on what to say, there are many “fill in the blank” templates created based on who you are calling/emailing.
Visit www.justiceforbigfloyd.com/make-calls for more people to call/detailed instructions on what to say.
Vote
In a country where an individual’s right to vote was an opinion rather than a given, it seems a bit ironic that the action could have effects.
However, voting for local representatives that support the BLM and registering to vote for the next general election are ways to elect officials that can instigate change within the government.
To find out more about the effects of voting/voting registration, visit https://blacklivesmatter.com/what-matters-2020/
Support Black Businesses
Of course, the tag line of nearly every movement is just as relevant here: change begins with you.
By recognizing the privilege highly prevalent in America and the everyday injustices faced by the black community, you can do your part by supporting in every way possible. By supporting black-owned businesses, you are doing your part to close the racial-wage gap and strengthen local economies. This is especially important during the ongoing pandemic crisis.
In addition to buying products from black-owned businesses, call out/boycott other businesses who display corporate discrimination in hiring minorities.
For a (nonexhaustive) list of black-owned businesses to support, visit https://nymag.com/strategist/article/black-owned-businesses-support-shop.html
Have Difficult Conversations
After learning about the movement, donating, signing petitions, etc., the next step is to encourage others to do the same.
While posting social media posts are great for spreading awareness, most who disagree with your post will simply click away. By reaching out to those with conflicting views, you have the opportunity to change their mindset.
Although the conversation may be uncomfortable or even feel like a lost cause, you are doing your part to enforce change.
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