some thoughts for my friends during the week of an uprising

02 Jun 2020

these are thoughts for my friends. they are written with people i know in mind. if i don’t know you personally, you are absolutely welcome to read this. just know that what is below might have been written differently. <3

i will likely update this post many times. nothing here is a demand. everything here is informed by patterns of behavior i have noticed since the end of may 2020.

last updated: 2 june @ 9:45a

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if you are a black person:

• see if you can orient towards taking care of yourself. what do you need? check in with yourself over and over again. when someone offers, accept. and be specific. it will be hard. and worth it. rest as much as you can (which might not be THAT much… but can you rest 5% more than you are resting now?)

if you are a non-black person of color:

(thanks sidra)

• http://centennialbeauty.com/how-to-support-black-lives-matter-as-a-non-black-person/
• https://newint.org/features/2018/03/15/be-a-better-ally
• https://www.instagram.com/p/CA0Eep-DMAz/?igshid=16c4xmsqiu6jr
• https://www.instagram.com/p/CA1AD70DAAj/?igshid=7urk5bnvftoe
• https://www.instagram.com/p/CA1EE9PJZal/?igshid=76xpy8buqzld
• https://www.instagram.com/southasians4blacklives
• https://www.instagram.com/p/CAq9_0uJary/?igshid=wfdtq420jxpn
• https://www.instagram.com/p/B_AYpCDgCri/?igshid=13v23tj19xewn

if you are a white person:

• see if you can orient towards what support is needed around you from black people. if you have a small number of black friends, know that they are probably receiving tons of check-in texts from people just like you. ask if there is a way you can support them and make their life easier this week (or forever). paying for or providing meals is a great way to free up someone’s time and energy.
• be ok if they don’t respond to you this week. send texts with endings like “respond if you are able.”
• don’t give support that wasn’t consented to.
• talk to your family members. often. daily if you can. notice how they respond. keep track of the arguments they use. research how to respond to them in a way that doesn’t alienate them. orient them towards collective efforts.
• if you are resisting talking to your family members, sit with why. research ways to work through that.

all people

• use your gifts to support movements for liberation!

if you have a platform

• use it to support attention liberation. direct people away from news media that is essentially funded on fear and outrage. do the research people and organizations in specific places (ideally the place you live or where uprisings are happening) and direct your audience’s attention there.
• diffuse attention is better than cataclysmic attention. find several orgs in a place, not just one. we need ecosystems, not individual heroes/saviors.

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