Monthly Archives: February 2021

Black Lives Matter UK has announced it is giving 600,000 in funding to grassroots groups across the country, including those that organised last summers anti-racism protests.

The campaign group received 1.2m in donations via a GoFundMe appeal, following widespread protests last summer.

BLMUK is awarding the funds in two phases. The first round has seen just over 169,500 given in small grants to 14 organisations that work to improve Black peoples lives in a racist society and that the campaign group has worked with over the last five years.

The largest recipient of the first round of funding is the United Friends and Families Campaign, which has received 45,000 to set up a peoples tribunal for deaths in custody. Other organisations include the groups behind last summers protest, All Black Lives, Justice for Black Lives, and A Tribe Named Athari.

BLMUK has also given funding to the Northern Police Monitoring Project;Sistah Space, Londons only specialist domestic violence service for women of African and Caribbean heritage; African Rainbow Family, a charity supporting Black and minority ethnic (BME) LGBTQI refugees and asylum seekers; Acts of Love, an African-Caribbean community centre; AZ Magazine, an arts and culture initiative for LGBTQI people of colour; and BME Cancer Communities, a charity that protects the health of BAME and low-income communities affected by cancer, long-term health conditions and Covid-19.

The group has also given money to two international groups: Abahlali, a Black South African shack dwellers movement campaigning against evictions and for public housing; and Sindicato de Manteros de Madrid, a Spanish labour union of people primarily from Black and migrant communities.

Each organisation has either Black or multi-ethnic leadership, BLMUK said.

The second round of funding will take place later this year, where groups will be invited to apply for the remaining funds ringfenced for other organisations.

BLMUK said it will put the remaining 600,000 towards building an anti-racist organisation that can scale up its existing community organising, educational work and direct actions.

Kingsley, an organiser at BLMUK said: We were inspired by the tens of thousands who supported the 2020 protests against racism and wish to send out a massive thank you to every single person that donated to us. These funds are another step in helping to sustain our movements for the future.

Lemara Francis, an organiser at BLMUK, said: State racism is widening inequality, making support for Black workers, youth, the undocumented, women, LGBTQI people and those struggling during the pandemic more urgent than ever. Were excited to be contributing to projects that will aid the vital work being done in these areas and more.

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Black Lives Matter UK to give 600,000 in funding to campaign groups - The Guardian

This month, two events defining opposite ends of the racial justice spectrum took place. In the first, in an interview with LBC, the home secretary, Priti Patel, roundly condemned last summers Black Lives Matter protests as dreadful. In the second, Black Lives Matter UK (BLMUK) announced it was disbursing half of the funding it had received since the protests started to grassroots groups across the country.

These events, less than a week apart, reveal the two spheres in which the fight for racial justice is taking place: theres the fictional one constructed by the media and politicians, and then theres the real world. In the Conservative press office and rightwing media, a culture war rages, featuring daily assaults on a cast of characters and organisations broadly associated with racial justice, migrant rights or attempts to reappraise Britains account of its colonial history. Black Lives Matter continues to be a favourite target, months after its protests abated. The movement is constantly dragged into debates as a symbol of a divisive coalition of Marxists and vandals, set on disrupting the peace and setting back the cause of racial justice.

In reality, BLMUK is quietly getting on with the constructive work required to make change happen. The organisation, which aims to end police persecution and promote racial justice, will distribute 600,000 from funds it received in donations since last summer to a range of recipients whose work aims to improve Black peoples lives in a racist society. While we were told that BLMUK was concerned primarily with cultural sabotage, the group has been going about the difficult business of setting up the infrastructure to help families investigate the deaths of their loved ones in custody, domestic violence charities, and community groups that protect communities affected by cancer, long-term health conditions and Covid-19.

The funding is not only a rebuke to the rightwing narrative that seeks to define the group as disruptive, but also a sign that culture war attacks, sustained and widespread as they might be, have their limitations. They can only do so much to get in the way of individuals powered by a sense of moral purpose and supported by allies who, in small, unglamorous and low-profile ways, fund them into viability.

Resistance may be alive at grassroots level, but the attacks catch up eventually. We are already seeing a chilling effect on the work of charities and voluntary organisations which are legally required to be impartial. The head of a migrant rights charity recently told me that, when taking on new projects, he doesnt just weigh up whether he has the resources, but also whether it will expose his organisation to claims of political bias. Worse still, he worries for the safety of his staff following Patels attacks on activist lawyers.

This danger can be easily missed. The very nature of culture war debates is that they are often silly, have a short life cycle in the news, and are designed to maintain a politically useful mood rather than achieve a specific policy aim. Episodes in the culture war give weight to the view that its fostered deliberately to distract from government failures In January, as the number of deaths began to increase after the governments hasty lifting of restrictions the previous month, Robert Jenrick dedicated his energy to the high priority matter of protecting statues.

Yet there is another front of the culture war, fought by people not only interested in distraction, but in results. Their aim is to shape the cultural and social climate so that it becomes inhospitable to causes at odds with their values; to determine who can participate in civic life, and who has a stake in Britains future. These battles are taking place in our schools and universities and extend into legislation. The resources of the government are being deployed to define what constitutes free speech in universities, dictate the content of curriculums, and launch official reviews into the progressive extremism of movements such as BLMUK.

Navigating this increasingly hostile climate is Petros Elia, of United Voices of the World, a trade union of precarious and migrant workers and one of the recipients of the BLMUK funds. When I spoke to him, his gratitude for the transformative donation was tempered by his account of the challenges his union faces in an environment where it is increasingly hard to raise funds due to legal hurdles, an antagonistic press and a prevailing ideology that is unsympathetic to the precariously employed.

BLMUK itself has, despite its successful fundraising, struggled to open bank accounts due to suspicion raised by its name, and had to scale back public appearances because of attacks in the rightwing press and government, opening it up to accusations of opacity. Kojo from BLMUK told me: The funds received, though large, are a trickle compared with the flood of resources stacked against us. They face a fight on two fronts: to support grassroots movements doing the real work to protect vulnerable racialised communities, and simultaneously to resist the vilification of these causes by elements of the media and the government.

But the dividends are worth fighting for. Supporting communities of colour would have benefits for the whole of society by making mainstream politics more open to redistribution and solidarity. Labours strategy to rise above what is seen as the unseemly sandpit of culture squabbles may spare it some headaches in the short term, but salts the earth against it in the long term. By trivialising the culture war, the left risks overlooking its impact on the very individuals and groups who are its future.

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The culture war isn't harmless rhetoric, it's having a chilling effect on equality - The Guardian

SOUND MINDS, a mental health charity based in Battersea, has published a book of poems in response to the traumatic events that revolutionised the Black Lives Matter movement last year.

Black Lives Matter: Reflections from the mental health systemis written by Sound Minds service users, staff and volunteers. You can order a copy by contacting Sound Minds.

All sales of the book will be donated to Canerows, Sound Minds peer support service for improving mental health care for people from BME backgrounds.

Black Lives Matter: Reflections from the mental health systemincludes 19 poems written by Sound Minds staff, volunteers and others with experience of the mental health system.

The poems are in response to the killing of George Floyd last year and reflect on the wider inequality, discrimination and violence faced by the Black community.

Founded in 2009, Canerows is a user-led service working to improve the lives of people who are overcoming mental health issues, particularly people from BME backgrounds who are over-represented in the mental health system.

The service sees Sound Minds staff and volunteers provide weekly support sessions to those in local mental health wards, as well as support to people in the months after they leave hospital.

Many of the staff and volunteers have lived experience of mental health wards, providing a unique support service to people in the wards.

Frances Grace, Canerows Peer Support and Ward Visitor, Sound Minds said:At Sound Minds we encourage our service users to express themselves creatively, be that through art, music or writing.

These poems clearly express peoples reactions to the events from last year and further illustrates our solidarity with our Black service users, staff and volunteers and our support for Black Lives Matter.

People from BME backgrounds are sadly over-represented in the mental health system.

All sales from this book will go to our Canerows Peer Support Service, helping those from BME backgrounds overcome their mental health issues and ultimately improve their lives.

Black In White: Experiences of racism in a series of poems

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Charity publishes Black Lives Matter-inspired poems - The Voice Online

En Espaol

The Washoe County School District (WCSD) committee meeting Tuesday on board policy 1310 had the district reversing its prior stance on allowing Black Lives Matter (BLM) and LGBTQ+ issues in the classroom.

The school district previously insisted such activities as having rainbow flags in a classroom were prohibited as political speech.

After months of upholding the board policy, the districts legal counsel was finally able to state that the teachers can have discussions about these issues. And there is nothing in this policy that actually prohibits such a practice.

Statements made at the districts Feb. 9 board of trustees meeting, while discussing an anti-racism resolution and brave spaces, foreshadowed this decision.

Following a nationwide Black Lives Matter movement after the police killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis, the school district was forced to take a hard look at discussions on issues of racism, discrimination and bullying.

Student communities such as WCSD4Change, teachers, parents and administrators engaged with the district to focus on the need for creating a more inclusive, compassionate environment for students.

They demanded a curriculum that recognizes the diversity and histories of people of color and ethnicities in Nevada and America, and they argued its a fallacy to tag discussion of LGBTQ+, Civil Rights and BLM issues as political.

During the committee meeting, WCSD General Counsel Neil Rombardo said that such an interpretation created misunderstanding and controversy around the policy. As the legal team checked the history and purpose of the policy in partnership with the department of Civil Rights Compliance, It became apparent to us that board policy 1310 expanded beyond the scope of its intended purpose when it started redressing the speech of employees and political activity of employees, he said.

The original intention of board policy 1310 was to prohibit political candidates from putting signs or symbols on the school premises and use them as a place to campaign. The policy that provides guidelines for political activities of staff is board policy 4500, which somehow morphed into 1310, added Rombardo.

We have pulled it out, he said, adding that confusing parts of board policy 1310 are going to be deleted and parts of it will be addressed in board policy 4500 concerning political activity of staff.

According to Rombardo, 1310 is about management of property in context to political signage and symbols, and 4500 is about management of staff concerning political activity.

Unlike before, from now on when the district enforces policy 1310 it will have consequences on the property and not staff. Policy 1310 alone will not prohibit staff from discussing social and political issues with students in a healthy and proper manner.

As drafting policies is always difficult, the committee has decided to have robust discussions on various aspects of the policy.

Some of the discussions concerned the meaning of a political act.

The districts legal counsel has drawn from the federal Hatch Act to come up with a clear-cut definition of what constitutes political activity. In its draft, the legal team defined political activity as any activity directed toward the success or failure of a political party, candidate or political office, political group, political organization, political issue, ballot initiative, bill, petition or any other matter currently before the state legislature or local government agency.

It further defines a political group as a group of people that assembles together in order to promote a common ideology and achieve particular objectives in the public, governmental sphere.

Trustee Kurt Thigpen said that such a definition might interpret groups like LGBTQ+ as a political group and run counter to the districts resolution that discrimination on the basis of race, sex, gender, ethnicity will not be tolerated.

Thigpen suggested that identity and culture-based groups should not be classified as political, expressing his concern that such a classification could lead to them being prohibited from celebrating things like Back History Month or LGBTQ month.

I need to think that through, said Trustee Jeff Church. We are talking [about allowing] the rainbow flag but not the Confederate flag. What if a Latino group wanted to put up the Mexican flag? So, I am reaching out to Mr. Rombardo, so we dont vote [on] a slippery slope and run into problems or marginalize other members of the community.

Well I am under the belief, unless the board decides otherwise in some other policy and regulation, that the Confederate flag is not part of your inherent upbringing The Confederate flag is hate speech, responded Rombardo.

What about the former Alabama flag that had the Confederate in the corner? quipped Church. I am just worried about the slippery slope.

Rombardo said he felt that allowing identity and culture based flags and related topics have a place in board policy 4500 and not 1310. Even then, the members felt it important to have a detailed discussion on the issue.

The main question at this point was how to respond to students demand for inclusivity and equity? How to support identity-based and historically marginalized groups like LGBTQ+ and Black students while also prohibiting an identity-based group that professes supremacy to run amok?

Board President Angie Taylor weighed in.

Do we want to be inclusive? Absolutely! Do we want to open ourselves up to [a situation], well, I identify as white therefore I am a white supremacist fan? she asked. Anybody supremacist is bad, but if we start looking at groups and peoples identity, whiteness is an identification too. Its not necessarily negative, but it certainly can be.

Taylor further noted that the district will need to continue to work on understanding and defining these issues. Later in the discussion she added that if identity-based student groups are threatening and marginalizing other groups then she would be concerned about the safety and diversity of other students.

We want to support students but we need to recognize theres this whole piece of it. We need to work on it, she said.

Harvard Professor Joan Donovan, who studies supremacist groups and their online movements, once explained how white supremacist groups have rebranded their hate-filled agendas to look acceptable amid their supporters. Part of the KKKs process was continually rebranding how their movement saw themselves. In the late 60s they were calling themselves the American Nazi movement. Then they switched to talking about a white power movement.

Trustee Ellen Minetto said that looking at flags is part of students education and when they are learning about Spanish or Mexican history, they can and should be able to see a flag. But, for all other times, the district should sport just American and Nevada flags.

There were also discussions about which topics can be discussed during school hours. Church asked what happens if some groups are allowed to talk about issues like abortion, Middle East peace and policing.

What we would not allow is for a group to come onto our campus and be pro-death penalty and pro-abortion or anti- whatever the case may be. That doesnt mean we are not going to teach about these difficult issues in an appropriate curriculum and allow for healthy debate, Rombardo responded.

The committee also discussed that most political signages will not be allowed on district property or school campuses. The district might allow bumper stickers on a personal vehicle, but large political signs painted on the side of a truck will not be allowed.

There will be grey areas, added Rombardo. And on those occasions, the superintendent will need to make a decision. But, when a district property has been rented out for a political event, with the express approval from the district, organizers can use political signage, temporarily.

The board will have its next meeting in two weeks for the community to weigh in on the proposed changes.

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School district reviews policy that prohibited staff from discussing Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ - ThisisReno

By Nancy Salguero McKay

Why should we celebrate Black history? Because it is our American Historybecause it is our personal history. Every aspect of our society and everyday culture is influenced by Black history! The foundation of our country is based on the contributions, the labor, and daily struggles of Black Americans.

How can we discuss our present or our past without the influence of our neighbors, our friends, or our communities? Why do we ignore how all of us are connected in one way or another? Why do we see more differences than similarities in each other? We all want the same thingthe same healthy community, the same safe neighborhood for our children to grow in, and to feel that we belong and are accepted as we are.

The Black Lives Matter in American History Community Exhibit, organized by the Highline Heritage Museum, traces the struggles and resilience of Black Americans who have fought for equity and justice from our nations beginnings to the present. The Black Lives Matter movement is a cry to end the tragedies of gun violence and systematic racism that Black communities have experienced for generations. This community exhibit features work by our local artists, community members, and students alongside stories of courage from Black history. Together, they reflect national and local perspectives on American history and the Black experience.

In the installation of this community exhibit, we utilized 11 window fronts around downtown Burien. The Highline Heritage Museum was honored to collaborate with the African American Writers Alliance, Highline High School, Choice Black Student Union, Evergreen High School, Minor Matters, Lawtiwa Barbersalon, Classic Eats restaurant, local artists, and community members.This public exhibit runs from Feb. 5 to April 30, 2021.

In our preparation for this exhibit, we interviewed people who were able to share and vocalize their messages. There is a vulnerability to exposing your emotions in public. This project is not about them versus us; it is about slowing down for a moment and asking for understanding. We are honoring and celebrating Black History month, but this celebration should be organically happening every day.The importance of black history should be celebrated beyond February.

Heres a map and photos of the exhibits, courtesy Maureen Hoffmann:

This article was written for the Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce by Board Member Nancy Salguero McKay. Nancy is the Executive Director of the Highline Heritage Museum located in Burien. The museums mission is to collect, preserve, and tell the stories of the Highline area and its people. For more information, please visit their website at

The Seattle Southside Chamber has served the communities of Burien, Des Moines, Normandy Park, SeaTac, and Tukwila since 1988. For more information about the Chamber, including a full list of member benefits and resources, please visit their website at

The Highline Heritage Museum is located at 819 SW 152nd Street in Burien:

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Learn why Black Lives Matter in American History at Community Exhibits around Burien - The B-Town (Burien) - The B-Town Blog

A team of Newsday photographers collectively captured first place in a prestigious photography contest for their work chronicling Black Lives Matter protests on Long Island and New York City.

Pictures of the Year International, or POYI, awarded Newsdays photojournalists the top honor in the category of "Local Team Picture Story." The entry consisted of 18 pictures by Newsday photographers in a series dubbed "Justice for George Floyd."

The winning photographers are: J. Conrad Williams Jr., Alejandra Villa Loarca, Charles Eckert, Thomas A. Ferrara and Steve Pfost.

The contest was part of POYI 78th competition. It is affiliated with the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism and recognizes outstanding photojournalism, online presentation and visual editing created or published in 2020, according to POYIs website.

Lynden R. Steele, the photojournalism director of the Reynolds Journalism Institute, said in an email Thursday that a panel of professional photographers unanimously determined Newsdays photos were the best in its category.

One of the awards judges, Cheriss May, an independent photographer and adjunct professor at Howard University, discussed the contest during a webinar on Wednesday. May said Newsdays winning images are "powerful" and could stand alone, but collectively they produced "a strong showing to tell a story."

John Keating, Newsdays director of multimedia news gathering, said in a statement Thursday: "It is an honor for Newsday photographers to be recognized by Pictures of the Year International. Our team fanned out across Long Island and New York City covering dozens of demonstrations over the summer."

He added: "There were risks involved. The threat of the COVID-19 virus being spread through large crowds was always present, and a number of the marches turned violent. Despite the dangers, Newsday photographers continued to work long days and often late into the night. The pictures produced helped Newsday readers understand the raw emotion behind the uprising."

Protesters chant on the ground on Carleton Avenue in Central Islip onJune 5.A bloodied protester is arrested as demonstratorsscuffle with members of the NYPD inBrooklynonMay 30. A protesterand NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan embrace during a solidarity rally for George Floyd onJune 1. Credits: Newsday /Steve Pfost;Charles Eckert; Newsday /Alejandra Villa Loarca

Some of Newsdays honored photos included a picture from Villa Loarca showing NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan hugging a woman in early June; a Williams photo taken about two weeks later in Roosevelt of a demonstrator holding a megaphone, raising his left hand while protesters march behind him, and a Pfost photo from early June taken in Central Islip.

Pfosts image shows a coordinated and symbolic demonstration of protesters laying on the ground with their hands behind their backs, as if under arrest.

To see the entire award-winning series, explore the gallery below.

Antonio Planas joined Newsday in 2018 and covers police news and general assignments. An award-winning reporter and Michigan State University alumnus, he has worked at the Boston Herald and Las Vegas Review-Journal.

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Newsday photographers win award for protest coverage - Newsday

BY JASON STARR

Observer staff

The Black Lives Matter flag will fly above Town Hall in Williston.

The selectboard voted 3-2 Tuesday to raise the symbol starting March 1 and ending June 21, approving a motion from board member Ted Kenney that followed a request from a group of citizens.

The request was originally submitted in October and the board deliberated on it at three separate meetings, collecting about 140 written and verbal public comments that revealed strong opinions among residents both for and against the idea.

The flag already flies at local public schools, approved in 2020 by the Champlain Valley School Board.

In making the motion to fly the flag for four months, Kenney said he separates the sentiment black lives matter from the organization of the same name. Residents who spoke against the proposal Tuesday called the organization an extremist political group.

Board member Joy Limoge, who said she received hate mail as a result of her previously stated opposition to the request, voted with Gordon St. Hilaire to oppose the motion. Jeff Fehrs and Terry Macaig voted with Kenney to approve.

Black Lives Matter is a political organization with a radical agenda, said Limoge.

She believes the board overstepped its bounds with the approval.

This is not what our function is, she said.

St. Hilaire objected because he hoped to put the question to town voters.

After the vote, Macaig directed town administrators to acquire the flag and raise it on March 1. At a meeting in June, the board plans to consider whether to extend the display.

Several residents spoke at Tuesdays meeting, some urging the board to approve the proposal and others urging the board to reject it.

It would make me feel incredibly proud that Williston was able to use its voice to talk about a more just and equitable society, said resident Jerry Greenfield, noting the countrys history of slavery and unequal treatment of black people. To address the inequality in our history, you have to be willing to speak out about things that arent right.

Resident Cindy Provost asked the board what the flag display will accomplish and said it will deface the towns historic village.

Will it really improve how people act or think, she asked. I personally feel it will be something that will divide the town more, rather than bring it together. I dont feel like we have to have a banner to make people think we will include everybody in our town.

Fehrs said the flag display is a first step toward addressing racial inequality in Williston.

I believe we are a just and caring community, but we need to do better, he said. It takes courage to admit racism does exist in our communityand we want to address that.

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Black Lives Matter flag to fly at Town Hall Williston Observer - Williston Observer