Daily Archives: June 6, 2020

While there are many larger organizations doing great work right now, the Record compiled a list of smaller grassroots and decentralized organizations that would benefit most from donations at this time.

DONATIONS:

Journalism:

National Association of Black Journalists the largest organization of journalists of color, providing programs, services, grants, events, mentorship, and advocacy

Unicorn Riot A decentralized media organization that has been live-streaming uprisings and leading the coverage of protests

Futuro Media Group creates diverse multimedia content in the service of empowering people to understand and navigate the complexities and misinformation in modern news

Ida B. Wells Society increasing and retaining reporters and editors of color in the field of investigative reporting

The Marshall Project a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that seeks to create and sustain a sense of national urgency about the U.S. criminal justice system

Nationwide:

Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective a collective of advocates, yoga teachers, artists, therapists, lawyers, religious leaders, teachers, psychologists and activists committed to the emotional/mental health and healing of Black communities

National Black Disability Coalition the nations organization for all Black disabled people. Membership and partners include Black disabled organizations, disabled people, parents, family members, faith-based, non-profits, and academic and policy leaders

United Negro College Fund increases the total annual number of African American college graduates by focusing on activities that ensure more students are college-ready, enroll in college and persist to graduation

Showing Up For Racial Justice a national network of groups and individuals working to undermine white supremacy and to work toward racial justice through community organizing, mobilizing, and education

Sisters Unchained a prison abolitionist organization dedicated to building community and power with young women affected by parental incarceration through radical education, healing, art, sisterhood and activism

Black & Pink abolition to dismantle the criminal punishment system and to liberate LGBTQIA2S+ people/people living with HIV/AIDS who are affected by that system, through advocacy, support, and organizing

Marsha P Johnson Institute an organization that protects and defends the human rights of Black transgender people by organizing, advocating, creating an intentional community to heal, developing transformative leadership and promoting collective power

Black Feminist Project funding radical programming that restores agency to the most marginalized of us, centers our narratives, promotes safety, empowers us to put ourselves FIRST, and enriches the lives of our children in our community with compassion, integrity, and joy!

Know Your Rights Camp, an initiative founded by Colin Kaepernick to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders

The Bail Project, a critical tool to prevent incarceration and combat racial and economic disparities in the bail system

Bail Funds/Legal Help by City

Resistance Funds by State

Minnesota:

Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha CTUL is a worker-led organization where workers organize, educate and empower each other to fight for a voice in their workplaces and in their communities.

Women for Political Change Holistically investing in the leadership and political power of young women and trans & non-binary individuals throughout Minnesota.

Northside business support support businesses on Minneapoliss Northside that have been impacted by recent demonstrations.

Pimento Relief Fund Were partnering with Pimento to provide black business without insurance relief after white supremacists set them on fire during the protests.

PETITIONS/RESOURCES:

Defund 12 Contact info for government officials and council members by location to reallocate egregious police budgets towards education, social services, and dismantling racial inequality

Master list of petitions/events/etc

Resources to support Black communities

Text FLOYD to 55156 or go here to demand all officers involved in Floyds death are charged with his murder

Text ENOUGH to 55156 or go here to demand justice for Breonna Taylor

Text JUSTICE to 55156 and 668366 to demand justice for Ahmaud Arbery

Text RESIST to 50409 to write to local officials demanding change

Sign this petition to demand a ban on law enforcement officials who have committed racially motivated acts of violence

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS:

Anti-racism resources for white people

75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice

What to Do Instead of Calling the Cops

Reading recommendations by Williams staff

125 Black-Owned Business to Support

Read the original:

The Record's suggested action items supporting Black Lives Matter - The Williams record

AMANDA BANCROFTMaking Ripples

Some U.S. residents on the west and east coasts are eyeing the Midwest and Arkansas with keen interest these days. Who can blame them? While there are great reasons to live almost anywhere, places with lower covid-19 cases are understandably appealing to folks right now. But its not only disease thats driving relocation; for some, its about living sustainably in community.

Anyone can live in an eco village, except Elvis Presley (despite what witnesses may say). But that doesnt mean everyone wants to. There are benefits and drawbacks to living in an eco village, and its good to see both the pros and cons before making a life-altering decision. Depending on the community, eco villages offer far more rewards than downsides and are a critical component in the fight against climate change.

Eco villages also known as intentional communities, communes, or sustainable communities are places in both rural and urban areas where a large or small group of people have chosen to live in proximity to one another while sharing resources, responsibilities and a common goal. That definition is based on my personal experience and research, but many people have their own definitions ranging from a place where crazies worship the devil to heaven on earth! One reason why eco villages get reputations along such a broad spectrum is because each individual eco village creates its own definition based on the needs of residents, while non-residents perceive each community very differently.

Some communities are completely dedicated to sustainability and preserving the environment. Other communities focus on Christianity or another religion or spiritual practice, with daily life revolving around worship and ceremony. Intentional communities are not necessarily created with religion or environmental concerns in mind, choosing instead to share services like child care and cooking. Many of them are open and tolerant to a diversity of people, with few rules sometimes life is highly individual, with residents having separate jobs, families and privately owned resources. But some can have quite a few rules ranging from income sharing to restrictions on who can become a member.

Living in community is the most common-sense approach to sustaining the human species. Were social creatures, after all, living on a planet with finite resources that are quickly being extinguished. In the current world population of over 7 billion people, do we really need over 7 billion personal vehicles, lawnmowers and televisions? It saves time and money to share resources, common spaces and responsibilities. There are also social benefits to living in a community where you know your family is supported and nurtured.

Not every community can fit every person, and not everyone wants to live in community anyway. But in these times of fear and uncertainty, people are strongly considering their options, and that includes how to live in such a way as to help one another and our planet.

Amanda Bancroft is a writer, artist, and naturalist living in an off-grid tiny house on Kessler Mountain. She and her husband Ryan blog about their adventures and offer tips to those wanting to make a difference at http://www.RipplesBlog.org. This column is reprinted with updates. Why Eco Villages first printed in The Free Weekly June 6, 2013.

Follow this link:

Come Together - The Free Weekly

The unrest we are seeing today is what happens when the road to justice is too long and drawn-out. These uprisings are a result of our communities feeling as though, once again, nothing is going to be done.

If the indefensible murder of George Floyd was not already enough, we have watched in horror the past few nights as our people were shot at, tear-gassed and beaten. This moment calls for us to unite around the outrage we feel and fight for the justice we demand. Now is the time to stand up and speak out as we guide our communities and our nation to the right side of justice. But let us be rational and move with care to make our voices heard with a lasting impact.

The following is a measured NAACP Response:

Between 1920 and 1938, the NAACP flew a flag outside its offices that read "A Man Was Lynched Yesterday" to mark the lynching of black people in the United States. It is a shame on our nation that almost a century later, black people continue to be brutalized and killed by racists.

The murder of George Floyd by police is an unspeakable tragedy. Sadly, police brutality against the black community has been an ever-present occurrence, dating back to its roots as a method used to preserve the system of slavery.

The arrest of ex-Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin is not enough. There are three other officers who are just as complicit in killing Mr. Floyd. We want them all charged for their role in this inexcusable death.

The uprisings taking place in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Minnesota, Kentucky, Los Angeles and many other locations across this country are a result of the anger, fear, sadness and distrust that have manifested for years throughout our community. Enough is enough. We. Are. Done. Dying.

These are NOT isolated incidents. They are directly related to the systemic racism that plagues our country at an even more alarming rate than the coronavirus. Our communities have been in a state of emergency long before the first COVID-19 case was brought to light.

We are calling for federal legislation similar to a hate crimes bill to be developed, which would provide detailed procedures and penalties in cases of blatant police brutality. The unrest we are seeing today is what happens when the road to justice is too long and drawn-out. These uprisings are a result of our communities feeling as though, once again, nothing is going to be done.

We watched as the President gave alt-right protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, the benefit of the doubt, even when videos showed them terrorizing innocent Americans. Yet in this moment of anger, sadness and fear at the continuous death of black lives at the hands of the police, this President chooses to characterize people who are mourning the loss of Philando Castille, Sandra Bland, Michael Brown, Jr., and now George Floyd as "thugs."

This Presidents actions are disgusting, yet not unexpected. He has proven to be incapable of displaying the competency and compassion necessary in this moment to lead this country through a turbulent time turbulence which has been largely orchestrated by his intentional marginalization of our communities.

Our recent national survey reported that 75% of Black people feel that Trump is the SINGLE greatest threat to the African American. That feeling was only amplified in one of his early morning tweets where he glorified violence against Americans stating that "When the looting starts, the shooting starts!"

Our communities are angry and saddened. But we must be strategic and measured as we battle this latest grave injustice. The NAACP will not rest until we see these officers charged and convicted for the murder of George Floyd. We must keep our focus on redressing the systemic racism against our community that led to this tragedy. We cannot afford to do so while losing more black sons and daughters.

While we protest peacefully, make persistent demands, and fight politically, let us remember that we are still under a pandemic with more cases of COVID-19 and deaths being reported in our communities. Let us not forget to practice safe distancing and wear masks to protect one another.

Most of all if we want to effect change, we MUST be determined to VOTE in November and encourage everyone in our circle of influence to VOTE. Please dont neglect participation in the 2020 Census.

Jimmy Buxton Jr. is president of the Fayetteville Branch of the NAACP.

See the article here:

NAACP chief: Our communities are angry and saddened. But we must be strategic and measured in battling injustice. - The Fayetteville Observer

Jamye Wooten isfounder of CLLCTIVLY, an organization thats building an ecosystem of grants and resources to nourish Black-led organizations that want to improve Baltimore.

CLLCTIVLY is currently offering microgrants of $500 to organizations as a part of the Baltimore Black-led solidarity Fund. The fund has already awarded over $30,000 to black led organizations and intends to contribute more. It is also currently raising money for its 2nd Annual Day of Giving. A drive to support and amplify black led organizations that will award over $10,000 in prizes. Like its 2019 event, this day of giving is aimed to combat stats that show only 2% of philanthropic Black-led orgs.

In an interview, the recent Johns Hopkins Social Innovation Lab alum gave his thoughts yesterday on the work hes doing, the George Floyd protests and his hopes for whats next. This interview has been edited lightly for length and clarity.

JW: We launched in 2019 and our first phase was an asset map directory, so mapping Black-led organizations based on the area of focus and neighborhood. So now there are currently 100 organizations on the platform. Wooten said. CLLCTIVLY wants to help amplify and increase access to funding for these organizations, Wooten said, which focus on areas like advocacy, mentorship, food sovereignty and mental health.

JW: Relationships move at the speed of trust and social movements move at the speed of relationships. You must first do the base build building work, must first do the relationship building work that fosters greater trust. Weve been very intentional about spending these first 18 months around building relationships and building trust. The base building component is the foundation of it.

CLLCTIVLY works to connect Black-led organizations.

Different in what way?

I think its a good sign. Im not aware enough to say that [the antagonism of the police] was not present but I will be going down today [Editors note: A youth-led march drew more than 1,000 people downtown to call for justice on June 1.] Ill talk to the people that I know that are on the front lines. We definitely know that there was a woman suffering from a mental health crisis that struck an officer and another officer knocked her out. I dont know what other incidents happened on the ground. So I wouldnt want to speak to what the response has been.

[The mass media often misses] the violence we often talk about that is systemic and structural violence. And I think certainly COVID has pulled the covers back on that, exposing the grave injustice of disinvestment and underdevelopment in the black communities. Its violence, and often we dont see that. So [the narrative] often [centers on] asking protesters to be nonviolent but were not talking about the system that has historically been violent towards black and brown people.

I hope that the greater community will learn is that we must shift resources. Fundamentally this is a question of power. I think real equity is [rooted in] how do we shift resources in a meaningful way to black communities so that theyre able to thrive. I hope that we begin to see a shift, between COVID-19 and the current protests, that resources are shifted in meaningful ways to black communities to build the capacity of our organizations and to be self determined.

Read the original post:

Supporting Black communities now and in the future: A Q&A with CLLCTIVLY Founder Jamye Wooten - Technical.ly

The company CEO wrote an open letter and the company shared a brief note on its website regarding recent protests.

ATLANTA Chick-fil-A is expressing its solidarity with black employees and communities, saying in a statement that "our hearts are breaking" for them.

Protests have flared nationwide in the last week in the wake of the killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, with demonstrators demanding an end to police brutality and institutional racism.

"Our hearts are breaking, for our black Team Members, Operators and Staff and all those in the Black community who are suffering and who have suffered for too long because of racism," a Chick-fil-A post on the company website said.

It adds that, "Racism should have no place in society. Not now, not ever. It cannot be tolerated" and promises, "At Chick-fil-A, we know we have a role in moving all of us forward. We will listen. We will be intentional. We will share."

It also included a recent LinkedIn post by CEO Dan Cathy explaining his views, which includes him writing he's heard his black friends and colleagues telling him repeatedly they are tired.

"They are tired, because no amount of kneeling or marching seems to truly address what has ailed our country for generations: A controverted view of race which is sometimes overt and sometimes subtle but always destructive," Cathy writes.

"There are countless academics and analysts who have written about how our democratic capitalism benefits only a few hundred incredibly wealthy families, individuals and corporations, so that the American dream is now reserved almost exclusively for them and their descendants.

"Because I am among that demographic, I am calling on them us to use our power and influence," he adds.

See the article here:

Chick-fil-A weighs in on recent injustices against black people - 11Alive.com WXIA

Jun. 6, 2020

To the Webster University Community,

We are writing again this weekend at a pivotal moment for our community and the nation, with a message of hope and change, along with a report of progress, as promised. As our letter to the community last week outlined, the killings of George Floyd and so many other Black Americans, such as Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and Manuel Ellis, along with those of the recent past, such as Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Tamir Rice, are unacceptable and tragic losses. Such killings of unarmed members of the African American community, at the hands of police, must end. Webster University deplores violence of all types. The University condemned this racial violence in last weeks letter and those sentiments are reiterated today while unequivocally declaring, Black Lives Matter.

The Webster community believes in engagement to make progress for racial and social justice rather than a destructive path by using divisive rhetoric. Our community believes in respectful and constructive dialogue rather than sensational statements meant to grab attention but little else. The University community must work together for the University to continue being a catalyst for positive change and the builder of a hopeful future during this defining moment of our era. Our community must work together to end systemic racism, inequity, and injustice.

This past week, we have taken these measures:

University Engagement

Parental & New Student Engagement

Community Engagement

In the coming weeks, the University will communicate about more ways that community groups and others beyond our students, staff, faculty, and alumni can brainstorm and partner with us on additional initiatives.

Our University community is hopeful for the fall and the future. This is an example of how Webster moves conversations to action. The expectation is that there will be more initiatives as our community draws closer to a fall semester that presents more opportunities for embracing progress on social justice issues while also adjusting to a campus climate coping with the coronavirus pandemic. The University will invest wisely, initiate measures in intentional ways, and report progress. The University will provide tangible evidence of how our community is bettering the climate for social justice and racial equity.

Webster continues to stand with its Black students, faculty, staff, and alumni. The University will actively work to dismantle institutional racism at every level throughout society. There should be no doubt, our communities and our nation must do better.

We embrace these challenges with open minds, open hearts, and open arms. We embrace each other so we can build a better and more hopeful future together while strengthening our community.

Elizabeth (Beth) J. StrobleChancellor

Julian Z. SchusterPresident

Vincent C. FlewellenChief Diversity Officer

tags: alumni, employee news, faculty, students, global, home page, president, chancellor, diversity and inclusion, community engagement, webster today,

Here is the original post:

Message from the Chancellor, the President, and the Chief Diversity Officer - Webster University Newsroom