We are deeply saddened and heartbroken by the murder of George Floyd and the blatant racism and brutality of police officers who are supposed to protect us. It’s unbelievable that it’s the year 2020 and we are still fighting for equality. Has America not learned anything from past mistakes and the Civil War? Has law enforcement not learned anything from Rodney King in 1991, among many other unjust killings and brutalities? How are we still here centuries and decades later? It’s embarrassing and it’s certainly not what America is “supposed” to be built on. Reality does not align with the values of equality and freedom we claim to hold.
If you question whether racism and police brutality permeates our country, please watch the full, unedited video of George Floyd’s murder here. Please listen to him say he can’t breathe and call out to his mother as multiple police officers perch on his back and suffocate the life out of him for 8 minutes. Please watch as the police officers continue to kneel on him for several minutes after he lost his bodily fluids and went silent and unconscious. Please watch as bystanders beg the officers to get off him. Please watch as the officers callously roll his body onto a stretcher without making any effort to revive him.
Please also watch the video of the police in Buffalo, NY shoving an unarmed 75-year-old protester over, cracking his head open and watching him bleed out as they kept walking. This is not “serving and protecting.” If these videos do not mobilize you into action and make you weep, I’m not sure what will. There is no justification for such callousness. There is no question that the black community has been marginalized. There is no question that we need police reform immediately.
STYLEFOX was built on inclusivity and diversity and we stand with the black community now and always. We are committed to finding real solutions and offering more than platitudes and canned responses. It’s not enough to post black squares and make PR spun statements on social media. We all must do more, including voting for police reform, donating to black causes, supporting black-owned businesses, educating ourselves, showing up at the polls and holding police offers and public officials accountable.
We promise to continue our support and to further amplify black voices and causes on our platform. Below we’ve included a list of resources from around the web to help support the black community and end police brutality. Enough has been enough for way too long. We need reform NOW. Please join us in taking action.
With Love,
Desiree Rabuse
CEO & Founder, STYLEFOX
Resources
(Hattip to: AdHoc, Mashable, Swaay, Self, Forbes.)
Participate in a Peaceful Protest:
• Find a protest near you here.
• Know your protesters’ rights via ACLU
• Protester Safety: what to bring and what to do if you get arrested
• Here’s a curfew list so that you can avoid interacting with the police or incurring a fine.
Donate to a Bail Fund:
Donate to Other Initiatives:
- • Black Lives Matter
- • Vetted list of donations for frontline youth
- • NAACP Empowerment Programs
- • Justice for Regis Korchinski Paquet
- • Justice for Dion Johnson
- • Justice for Breonna Taylor
- • Campaign Zero: a campaign that calls to end police violence by implementing comprehensive research-based policy solutions
- • Communities United Against Police Brutality
- • Free COVID-19 testing, advocacy, & education for the black community in Philly
- • Homeless black trans women fund
- • GoFundMe for Fordham Road businesses/protest cleanup
- • IG Post featuring black queer & trans organizations to support
- • This YouTube video series was created to offer a way to donate to #blacklivesmatter for folks who are not able to financially contribute at this time.
Support Minority-owned Businesses:
- • Minority-owned businesses hit hard from protests in Minneapolis fund
- • New York’s black-owned restaurants that could use our support right now
- • List of black-owned businesses to support
- • Thread of small black businesses destroyed by protests with GoFundMe links
- • Black-owned business relief fund for various cities that have been affected by the protests
- • Buy Black Atlanta: help brown & black businesses damaged by the protests
Educate Yourself:
If you are buying a book, consider purchasing it from a black-owned bookstore. Here’s a list of a few with online stores, but do the research to find one in your area.
- • This BLM document is a master list of petitions, bailout funds, ways to educate yourself, and more.
- • Here are a few books for you to read about anti-racism, but know there are many more:
- – “So You Want To Talk About Race” by Ijeoma Oluo
- – “How to Be an Antiracist” by Ibram X Kendi
- – “Me and White Supremacy” by Layla Saad
- – “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander
- – “White Tears, Brown Scars” by Ruby Hamad
- – “Why I’m No Longer Talking About Race” by Reni Eddo-Lodge
- – “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo
- – There’s this Google Drive folder with free pdfs of books written by black activists
- – Check out this anti-racist book recs illustration by Jane Mount on IG
- • Share and read through this google doc: Anti-racism resources for white people
- • Share and read this IG post “8 Lessons About Racism That Were Helpful to Me as a White Person” by Jen Winston
- • Tatiana Mac’s white women’s guide on how to make a meaningful change during the anti-police protests (Don’t worry, there’s a white men’s guide, as well.)
- • This twitter thread includes ways you can help if you can’t make it to a protest.
- • Rachel Rickett’s Antiracism Resources
- • This list of anti-racist movies/tv-shows by Camille Ramos on IG and Letterboxd
- • How to build a police-free future IG post (by reallocating funds to mental health, social workers, addiction specialists, etc.)
- • Join Noname’s book club
- • Here’s a thread on how to check in on your black friends.
- • She Shred’s Anti-Racism Resources for White & Non-Black Musicians
Petitions To Sign
- #DefundThePolice
- I Run With Maud
- Reclaim the Block
- Georgia Hate Crime Bill
- Hands Up Act
- Raise the Degree
- #JusticeforBre
- National Action Against Police Brutality
- Campaign Zero’s Solutions — 10-step policy solution guide
- Find Your Rep — Campaign Zero tool to find and contact your local representative to end police violence
- 75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice — more links in video description on petitions to sign
- Mandatory Life Sentence for Police Brutality – Change.org
- Sign the Tallahassee Dream Defenders’ Petition for Tony McDade
- Text “JUSTICE” to 668366 to sign MoveOn’s petition for George Floyd or sign here
- Sign Color of Change’s Petition for George Floyd
- Text “ENOUGH” to 55156 or sign this petition to demand justice for Breonna Taylor
- NAACP #WeAreDoneDying Petition
- Sign the Movement for Black Lives’ petition to push elected officials to fight against the militarization in communities of color
- Use this template to contact your representative and push them to consider changing police training to decrease police brutality
- Email NYC Mayor de Blasio here
Stay Up To Date:
Follow these people for updates on organizing! Many of them accept donations or tips for their services. If you value the knowledge they are sharing, consider donating.
- • @bailfundnetwork on twitter
- • @justiceforgeorgenyc on IG
- • Kimberlé Crenshaw on IG
- • Louiza Doran on IG
- • @theconsciouskid on IG
- • @blklivesmatter on Twitter and IG, @BlackLivesMatter on Facebook
- • @freethemall2020 on IG
- • @decolonizethisplace on IG
- • @nationallawyersguild on IG
- • @jtbrg on Twitter (on the ground updates, jail support, etc)
- • Unicorn Riot: You can follow non-profit media organization on Twitter (@UR_Ninja) and IG (@unicorn.riot)
- • Survived and Punished: Twitter (@survivepunish) and NY Chapter Twitter (@survivepunishNY) and an organizer’s Twitter (@sheabutterfemme)
- • @changethenypd on Twitter
- • @PplsAction on Twitter
- • @antiracismctr on Twitter
- • @reclaimtheblock on IG
- • @blackvisionscollective on IG
- • @naacp_ldf on IG
- • @freedomartsmovement on IG
- • @justicecenterenelbarrio on IG
- • @audrelordeproject on IG
- • @colorofchange on IG
- • @civilrightsorg on IG
- • Here’s a list of activists to follow to continue to learn more on a daily basis
Resources for Black people in Mourning:
- • Online Vigil hosted by BUFU Collective
- • Ethel’s Club is offering free Healing and Grieving Sessions
- • Herbal Mutual Aid Network by GOODWITCH provides herbal medicine to Black people seeking support
- • Therapy resources for people of color: a lot of MA/Boston-based resources, but many helpful national resources as well
- • Supported: A peer support group for all Black Folks. Thursdays at 5pm, free!
- • A Free therapy session for New York State residents from Well Williamsburg
- • Circle of Care for Black Womxn by Healhaus: a free support community to teach life-affirming tools, led by Thérèse Cator
- • 7 Virtual Mental Health Resources Supporting Black people by Healthyish
