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We care deeply about stories.

And the stories we have heard as of late are of Black lives, unjustly taken.

These stories are not new. We acknowledge that our collective ignorance of these stories to date has been an intentional consequence of living in – without question – a system built on white supremacy. We acknowledge that the Black communities these stories are about have been and continue to be systematically oppressed, while their culture has been systemically exploited. We acknowledge our participation in this system.

We acknowledge that Black and Indigenous communities have been working to dismantle these harmful (for all of us) systems for generations. We acknowledge that we need to learn from and act based on the stories told BY Black and Indigenous communities, and not the ones that are told ABOUT them.

We challenge you, as we are challenging ourselves, to read more and become more educated about the stories of Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour, as articulated by them. We challenge you, as we are challenging ourselves, to examine the stories that have been deeply entrenched within us about these communities and how they have impacted our response (or lack thereof) to the injustices they face.

Racism and white supremacy live in all of us. It is the water we swim in. Unpacking and unlearning the harmful stories we may hold, and learning from the lived experiences of Black and Indigenous communities is just the start.

Being able to engage in this work now is a privilege gained at the cost of Black lives. It is not one we take lightly.

Resources

Here’s a list of books based on what we’ve seen recommended over the last couple of days:

You can support Minneapolis directly here:
https://secure.everyaction.com/zae4prEeKESHBy0MKXTIcQ2

The Equal Justice Initiative:
https://support.eji.org/give/153413/#!/donation/checkout

Black Lives Matter Canada:
https://blacklivesmatter.ca/donate/

And you can sign this petition:
https://act.colorofchange.org/sign/justiceforfloyd_george_floyd_minneapolis

Interview with Anderson Cooper with (philosophy professor) Cornel West: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyYEmokSh-c

 

 

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