02/06/2020
What is happening in America transcends all political, class and social-economic backgrounds and it is important we stand as allies to the Black Lives Matter movement. The racist murder of George Floyd last week by a US Police Officer, while 3 other officers stood by and watched as he begged for his life, is the harsh reality of what staying silent, and being too afraid to speak up can lead to.
Racism is a systemic UK & global issue and we can no longer stand on the sidelines, and simply share our shock with a retweet or comment, before scrolling onto the next issue. Don’t just glance at someones post and move onto the next one, this is a privilege as white people we can’t ignore anymore, because our black and brown brothers and sisters don’t have that luxury to just switch off from it, for them, there is no escaping it.
If anything has intimidated you, or made you uncomfortable over the past few days, this can largely stem from a lack of understanding, the solution to this is to seek education and listen.
Some recommendations from us would be books such as ‘Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race by Reni Eddo-Lodge’ and ‘Inglorious Empire: What the British did to India by Shashi Tharoor’,
Powerful documentaries like 13th , The House I Live In and The Force;
And podcasts such as The Stoop by Hana Baba and Leila Day and The Nod by Britney Luse and Eric Eddings.
The other ways to support are through donating and actively protesting, to find out more on this we recommend visiting blacklivesmatter.com where you can find more information bout the UK, as well check UK Black Pride at ukblackpride.org.uk
As COVID-19 forces lots of Pride events to be cancelled, Amnesty International, UK Black Pride, Stonewall and ParaPride have joined to bring celebrations online.
