The killing of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020 sparked what has become an international movement for change amidst the pandemic. George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died after a Minneapolis cop kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes. A bystander video of the event was widely circulated around the U.S. and across the world, inspiring outrage, disgust, and grief at the tragedy of such an unnecessary loss and the horrible example of police brutality towards black people in America. Protests and riots broke out throughout the region in the next several days in Minneapolis, which is one of the most segregated cities in the United States. Demonstrations in Louisville, Kentucky which began in May over the police shooting of Breonna Taylor continued as part of the nationwide reaction to George Floyd’s death. The subsequent death of David McAtee, who was fatally shot on June 1 during these protests, inspired even more anger. The movement soon spread to the rest of the United States and then worldwide from Brazil to Australia, even reaching countries such as Rusia, Iran, Syria, and Yemen, where demonstrators and protestors are echoing support for the Black Lives Matter movement and demanding justice for these victims of police brutality. 

In the middle of a pandemic which has forced the entire world into isolation, the George Floyd protests have inspired a revolutionary shift for Black Lives Matter and the movement against police brutality, bringing people from vastly distinct countries and cultures together, united in the fight for equality.

All photos taken by Lorie Shaull. Please note that the images of destruction caused to the city of Minneapolis were caused by looters and rioters, not by protestors. This difference is very important. The majority of protestors in the United States and around the world have been peaceful in the face of violence.

Inspired by this moment and the necessity for immediate change, we have compiled a list of resources to educate ourselves on this important issue, places to donate to support the movement, places to get information and learn how to get involved, and petitions to sign to demand change. These are important resources and causes, but we should remember that this is not a panacea - this is just the beginning, and information is power. 

Here’s where we can start.

RESOURCES TO EDUCATE OURSELVES

Books:

• How to Be Anti-Racist by Ibrahim X. Kendi

• Freedom is a Constant Struggle by Angela Davis

• Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

• White Fragility by Robin Diangelo

• So you Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo

• Me and White Supremacy by Layla Saad

• The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

• Black Feminist Thought by Patricia Hill Collins

• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou 

• Dark Days by James Baldwin

• Don’t Touch My Hair by Emma Dabiri

• Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde 

UK-based Books:

• Lovers and Strangers by Clair Wills

• Black and British by David Olusoga 

• There Ain’t No Black in the Union Jack by Paul Gilroy

• Brit(ish): On Race, Belonging and Identity by Afua Hirsch

• Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of the Empire by Akala

• The Good Immigrant: 21 Writers Explore What It Means To Be Black, Asian, And Minority Ethnic In Britain Today edited by Nikesh Shukla

• Dark Days by James Baldwin

• Mother Country: Real Stories of the Windrush Children by Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff:

Order books from independent book sellers using one of the following links: 

• US: www.indiebound.org

• UK: www.hive.co.uk

Podcasts:

• About Race with Reni Eddo-Lodge

• 1619, The New York Times

• Code Switch, NPR

• Have You Heard George’s Podcast, BBC Radio

• The Diversity Gap

• Say Your Mind by Kelechi Okafor

• Stories that Stick from Blacticulate

• Intersectionality Matters! from The African American Policy Forum

• Throughline from NPR

Online Resources:

• Color of Change (@colorofchange)

• The Conscious Kid (@theconsciouskid)

• NAACP (@naacp)

• SisterSong (@sistersong_woc)

• ACLU (@aclu_nationwide)

• Courtney Ahn (@courtneyahndesign)

• No White Saviours (@nowhitesaviours)

• Check Your Privilege (@ckyourprivilege)

• The Great Unlearn (@thegreatunlearn)

Important TV & Films:

• 13th (Netflix)

• I Am Not Your Negro (Amazon Prime)

• When They See Us (Netflix)

• Whose Streets? (Amazon Prime, Hulu)

• LA 92 (Amazon Prime, Netflix)

• Teach Us All (Netflix)

• Just Mercy (Amazon Prime)

• Selma (Amazon Prime)

• American Son (Netflix)

• If Beale Street Could Talk (Amazon Prime, Hulu)

“Easy-watching” TV & Films:

• Hidden Figures (Amazon Prime, Hulu)

• Green Book (Amazon Prime, Hulu)

• Dear White People (Netflix)

• #blackAF (Netflix)

• See You Yesterday (Netflix)

• Noughts & Crosses (BBC)

• Black-ish (Amazon Prime)

Questions for white people on addressing your privilege:

• In what ways does my proximity to whiteness afford me privileges that aren’t extended to People of Colour?

• In what ways have I been conditioned to believe in the superiority of whiteness?

• In what ways have I engaged in rhetoric that promotes othering or the stereotyping of People of Colour?

• What can I do to better educate myself on the historical context of race in the country and community I exist in?

• How can I begin to make long term changes in my own life to effectively make change and support People of Colour? 

Prompts written by @jezzachung. White privilege doesn’t mean your life hasn’t been hard, it means your skin tone isn’t one of the things making it harder!

PLACES TO DONATE AND SUPPORT THE MOVEMENT

US-based movements and charities:

• Black Lives Matter

• George Floyd Memorial Fund

• Minnesota Freedom Fund

• Justice for Breonna

• National Bail Out

• Black Visions Collective

• Reclaim the Block

• The Innocent Project

• The Bail Project

• ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union)

• NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund

• Communities United for Police Reform 

• Equal Justice Initiative 

• Justice for David McAtee: Click here

UK-based movements and charities: 

• Black Minds Matter UK

• Black Girls Camping Trip

• Celutions

• Black Thrive 

• United Family & Friends Campaign

• Black Protest Legal UK

• Stand Up to Racism

• Stephen Lawrence Charitable

• The Black Curriculum

• Stand Against Racism and Inequality (SARI)

Support Queer Black Organisations: 

• Black Trans Protestors Emergency Fund (collaboration between @btfacollective @theokraproject @blacktranstravelfund and @forthegworls)

• The Audre Lorde Project www.alp.org

• The Okra Project www.theokraproject.com

• The Marsha P. Johnson Institute www.marshap.org

• Transwomen of Colour Collective www.twocc.us

• Exist Loudly Fund 

• Black LGBTQIA+ Therapy Fund

• Youth Breakout

• Trans Cultural District 

• LGBTQ+ Freedom Fund

• SNaPCo

• Black AIDS Institute 

• Trans Cultural District

• Trans Justice Funding Project 

• Youth Breakout

HOW TO HELP

More places to get involved:

• Collection of resources on ways to help: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co

• Support a comprehensive study of Black History being taught in schools: The Black Curriculum (@theblackcurriculum, #TBH365)

How to help if you cannot donate or protest:

• Watch this youtube video to financially contribute to the movement from home. It is made by Black creators and when you leave the ads running, 100% of ad revenue raised from the video views will be donated to Black Lives Matter and bail-out funds.

• Make posters which spread awareness and information on the Black Lives Matter movement and put them up around your local area.

• Sign petitions or email your government officials and representatives directly.

PETITIONS TO SIGN

Remember that donating to change.org only gives money to change.org, so sign these petitions and share them, but be sure to donate directly to the causes mentioned above.

• Justice for George Floyd: Click here

• #JusticeforFloyd: Click here

• Justice for Breonna Taylor: Click here

• Justice for Belly Mujinga: Click here

• Ban the use of inhumane rubber bullets: Click here

• National action against police brutality: Click here

• Defund the Minneapolis Police Department: Click here

• Pass Georgia hate crime bill: Click here

• Support the Hands Up Act: Click here

• Classify white supremacists as terrorists: Click here

World:

• Censorship of police brutality in France: Click here

• Working conditions for black people in Italy: Click here

• Justice for migrant domestic workers in Lebanon: Click here

UK:

• Make Black History compulsory in workplaces, schools, & universities: Click here

• Julius Jones is innocent. Don't let him be executed by the state of Oklahoma: Click here

• Suspend the UK’s export of tear gas, rubber bullets, & riot shields to United States: Click here

• Petition for UK government to teach anti-racism in schools: Click here

• Battle racism by updating GCSE reading lists: Click here

• Make white privilege and systemic racism a compulsory part of the British education course: Click here

• Teach British children about the realities of British Imperialism and Colonialism: Click here

Ensemble is an independent, online magazine providing refreshing, insightful, and international commentary, with opinions and voices you don’t normally get to hear from. Created by young people, for all people. Subscribe to our mailing list to stay in the know.