To the #Blackout Community and Tumblr at large,
We know you must have a lot of questions or are feeling distressed about the news. The world has been dealing with a lot this year, and it is an especially harrowing time for Black Americans and Black folks abroad. We know your biggest question right now could be summed up by a quote from Toni Morrison:
Here at #TheBlackout, we have decided to help you start finding an answer to that question - we feel that we need each other. We need unity, organization, a clear sense of direction, but more importantly, a space where you can be yourself without judgement or fear.
So, in addition to boosting your art and businesses, our highest priority right now is to provide you all with resources to help you start from where you are.
This is a masterpost of places you can donate, find mental health + spaces for radical self-care, and just do something fun. We will be adding on as things change.
Minneapolis Freedom Bail Fund & Louisville Community Bail Fund
Reclaim the Block
Black Visions Collective
The Official GoFundMe of George Floyd’s Family
Official Petition for Breonna Taylor
Justice for Regis Official Fund
Tony McDade’s Memorial Fund
Black Lives Matter Network
Ethel’s Club - Black-owned and operated social club offering access to Black therapists and a multitude of creative events for People of Color.
Crisis Text Line - A different approach to crisis intervention, Crisis Text Line offers you help when you text 741-741. You’ll be able to chat with someone who is willing to listen and provide you with additional resources.
Shine Text. – Black-owned! Sign up to receive cheerful texts and tips every day.
Therapy For Black Girls - A Black-owned a directory to help you find Black therapists in your area.
Knowing your rights - ACLU
How To Prepare for a Protest. (Remember to wear a mask in or to protect yourself!)
A Twitter thread of suggested readings
Some of our favorite online communities.
Nerd Culture: @blacknerdproblems, @superheroesincolor
Poetry and Literary Spaces: Cave Canem Literary Balms program for Black poets, Nuyorician Online Open Mic Events, Well-Read Black Girl
Podcasts: Therapy For Black Girls, Strong Black Legends by Netflix’s Strong Black Lead, The Read with Crissle and Kid Fury.
Hobbies: #BlackBirdersWeek by BlackAFinSTEM (5/31 - 6/8), Wellness Week by Black Girl Gamers.
Join us for the 5/31 Emergency #Blackout/#BlackoutDay here on Tumblr and Twitter.
Naomi Campbell for Alaïa (1991)
A black transgender man was killed in Tallahassee, he was shot by cops in broad daylight. His name was Tony Mcdade. Do not let people misgender him. Don't let his death slip under the radar.
26-year-old Jamarion Robinson’s grandmother Beverly Nixon said her grandson was bipolar and schizophrenic. Still got shot 76 (!!!) times. Would a white person get the same treatment?
The witness said he saw more than a dozen patrol cars at the complex where US Marshals killed Robinson on August 5, 2016. Why were there no behavioral specialist? Surely one of them would know how to interact with a bipolar schizophrenic better than the police.
I’m absolutely disgusted.
Here’s Jamarion’s mother’s GoFundMe in case anyone is willing to help.
Black Lives Matter.
“The argument began as soon as Charlie Mai and his brother, Henry, announced their plans to attend a Black Lives Matter protest that evening in D.C. Their father was not having it.
Glenn Mai, a retired FBI agent, had been raised in Dallas by Chinese immigrants who had taught him that he would succeed if he just worked hard.
“Chinese culture is very much about working within the system,” Glenn, 54, said, and during decades in law enforcement, he’d come to believe the system worked.
His son, Charlie, 24, took a different view. “My father deeply believes that everyone has a fair chance, which is just basically untrue,” said Charlie, an artist who fled New York for his family’s home in Northern Virginia because of the pandemic. “It’s very Asian to me, that view that if everyone just works hard, then everything will turn out right for them. I’m definitely a little reactive to that because I think that’s delusional.”
normani photographed by quinn feldman
Sistas with guitars. ❤💔