Will you take my hand? I’ve created this page of resources in support of #BlackLivesMatter — I expect that this page will expand and grow.  If you’ve followed my blog for any amount of time, you’ll see lots of social justice resources and poems woven throughout simply because it’s in my DNA. And since my novel, The Amazing Adventures of Selma Calderón: A Globetrotting Magical Mystery of Courage, Food & Friendship was published in 2015, 5% of net profits have been donated to Teaching for Change, an organization that builds social justice, starting in the classroom. You can follow my posts related to #BlackLivesMatter on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @RebeccaVWriter.

One caveat, this page offers a combination of resources to support my black friends and family with tools such as this Black Joy and Healing Resources spreadsheet and a time sensitive one: July 3 deadline for Black-Owned Beauty Businesses from Glossier. There are others for my non-black readers.  Let’s get grounded together with India Arie:

The writer, artist and comedian, Barthunde Thurston participated in a panel hosted by Jemele Hill with the opening question, “What does a future without racism look like?” You’ll also hear from writer Kimberly Jones and former NFL player Andrew Hawkins.  I have been a fan of Baratunde for a long time. I even got to meet him at an event in 2016! I encourage you to listen to the panel and to watch his TED talk below.

How to Deconstruct Racism, One Headline at a Time

Rachel Cargle’s public address on Revolution Now along with her three-pronged approach of Knowledge, Empathy and Action is a powerful framework for change. I chose to support her Patreon account called The Great Unlearn for early access to resources and more. Here’s the description of this brief address:

In her first public address Rachel Cargle will be in community and conversation around the realities of the revolutionary moment we are in today. Using her three pronged approach; Knowledge, Empathy, Action, Rachel will address the recent police brutality and racist incidents in Minnesota and across America, analyzing the modern manifestation of America’s racist history and making a call to action for all those who are ready to say, “no more”. This address will serve as a launching point for more critical language, a more critical lens and most importantly more critical action to lead us toward the revolution, which is now. #BlackLivesMatter Revolution Now Simple Syllabi: A starting point for finding your place in the revolution link: https://www.patreon.com/posts/revolut…

One of the things that people struggle with in terms of building a movement is roles. Here’s a very useful document called “Mapping Our Roles in Social Change Ecosystems” from Building Movement.org

Now I want to invite you to listen to Darius Hicks of While Black podcast (check out his podcast) being interviewed on Julie Lieberman Neale’s Mother’s Quest podcast. At a minimum, please consider listening to these seven minutes which she posted on Facebook:

For allies, if you have heard the term “performative allyship” and are wondering what it is and how to address it. This article may be helpful. Here’s an Ally Resource Guide that continues to be updated. And particularly for white women, Bethany Webster wrote, True Intergenerational Healing Includes Confronting Racism.

For my non-black POC readers, here’s a spreadsheet of resources on anti-blackness in various communities of color.

Here is a list of black, queer and trans organizations to support. (It’s an Instagram post so you will need to page through the images to see the resources.)

Here’s how some brands have reacted to #BlackLivesMatter.

You all know how I feel about food! Here’s the ultimate guide to black-owned farms and food gardens.

I have about thirty more links to share but for now, I’m going to wrap this iteration of this page with some education links. I mentioned Teaching for Change above. You will also find their Social Justice Books page which includes curated book lists on any number of topics. You might also enjoy listening to this special Juneteenth Freedom for All episode of the Together Apart podcast by Priya Parker including middle school teacher, Tanesha Forman. You can listen on Apple Podcasts or your preferred platform such as Radio One. It is brief and powerful. Listen to the children. Again, listen to the children. Don’t miss her preceding episode Centering Blackness: A World Reimagined here or here.

Sankofa Club also has a 5-day challenge for raising proud black children with their resources related to “Our History Started Before Slavery.” I recently had the pleasure of connecting virtually with the editor of CULTURS magazine (check out the site and latest issue for sale “Defining Blackness Around the Globe) which is a home for people of mixed backgrounds (like me!). They are selling these African-American princess affirmation cards which are the brainchild of LaChanda Gatson, an international hair stylists who worked extensively in Hollywood.

I have many more resources to share. For now, let’s start with these. We have the collective power to dismantle the systemically racist institutions and infrastructures in our global society. And we have the power to love each other and to heal. I invite you to take some measured action today–whether it’s deep rest or finding your role in the movement, if it’s new to you, and taking your first step.