part of your allyship journey will require you to take action.
here’s a good place to start.
As a white person, you have the opportunity (and frankly, the duty) to contribute to the fight for racial justice. This can look a lot of different ways, but one really impactful way to do your part is to be active and use your voice where it counts. What we mean is:
Voting & all of its associated events
Canvass in your community
Volunteer at a voting booth
VOTE!
Contacting and pressuring your legislative representatives
Lots of good resources exist, including templates for emails & phone messages and petitions
Continue to educate yourself
Familiarize yourself with organizations and different movements
Donate, donate, donate!
Always remember- money talks!
Equal justice initiative
“EJI works with communities that have been marginalized by poverty and discouraged by unequal treatment. We are committed to changing the narrative about race in America. EJI produces groundbreaking reports, an award-winning wall calendar, and short films that explore our nation’s history of racial injustice, and we recently launched an ambitious national effort to create new spaces, markers, and memorials that address the legacy of slavery, lynching, and racial segregation, which shapes many issues today.”
color of change
“We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us. As a national online force driven by 1.7 million members, we move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America.”
American civil liberties union (ACLU)
This organization has chapters in every state and is rich in resources and information. They’re one of our favorite go-to’s!
the sentencing project
“We cannot run society for the privileged and allow a significant proportion of the population to be marginalized. It impacts the quality of life for all of us if we have ‘throw away’ people. A justice system which tolerates injustice is doomed to collapse".”
legislator comments on racism
The National Conference of State Legislators put together a sample of statements from various legislators across both aisles addressing the death of George Floyd. It’s important to remember that these people represent all of our and all of our needs, and that they have the power to make changes and improve the quality of life for Black Americans.
As allies, we must put the pressure on our representatives, and to hold them accountable to their comments.
Want to learn more about the government’s role in reparations?
congress.gov - H.R. 40 Bill
“This bill establishes the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans. The commission shall examine slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate remedies. Among other requirements, the commission shall identify (1) the role of federal and state governments in supporting the institution of slavery, (2) forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors against freed slaves and their descendants, and (3) lingering negative effects of slavery on living African-Americans and society.”
NAACP Legal Defense Fund
“The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) supports the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act (H.R. 40 and Senate Bill S.1083) – bills that would establish a commission to study the effects of slavery in the United States and the subsequent actions taken by federal, state, and local governments to perpetuate economic and racial discrimination against African Americans.”
Congress.gov H.R.7120 — george floyd justice in policing act
“This bill addresses a wide range of policies and issues regarding policing practices and law enforcement accountability. It includes measures to increase accountability for law enforcement misconduct, to enhance transparency and data collection, and to eliminate discriminatory policing practices.”