Anti-Racist Work Is All of Our Work
Many of us are experiencing deeply the stress and losses of this time: the disease, fear, heightened financial hardships, and systemic failures as revealed by this pandemic, which already disproportionately impacts communities of color and Black and Brown folks. And now the terrible reminders of how white supremacy in all its forms, its perpetrators and apologists, continue to persecute and murder Black people on the daily. We grieve and rage for George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, David McAtee, and for all the lives lost to this violence.
Kundiman itself was inspired by and modeled after the transformative joy and power of Cave Canem, an organization for Black poets. Our civil rights movements, our cultural and art movements, are intertwined with one another. This has been said so many times, but it is true—–none of us are free, until we all are free. Black lives matter, and always have.
As writers, we affect the way readers think and feel. We ask of you, of ourselves, and our communities: How will we continue to step into our power together?
For Black folks, we wanted to put forth a few wellness resources we've recently come across that were specifically made by and for Black communities in case any are helpful.
- The Nap Ministry: Rest as Resistance and Reparations
- BEAM (Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective)
- Black Girl in Om: A meditation recording for Black Girls
- Liberate Meditation: Meditation app for Black, Indigenous, People of Color
- Ethel’s Club: In The Name of Freedom: A Gathering For Black Healing on June 19th
For those of us who are non-Black Asian Americans and people of color: It's clear that we must continue talking about anti-Blackness with our peers. We write this while invoking the powerful history of Asian Americans fighting and creating alongside Black people. We should voice outrage during spikes of anti-Asian sentiment, and act in remembrance of past harms done to our community; we must also resist and fight back on the relentless brutality Black folks face in this country every day.
Here are some resources on furthering anti-racist work:
- National Resource List: including community memorial funds, bail funds, political education resources, names of organizations to support, and protesting tips
- Anti-racism resources: Google Doc of anti-racism resources, such as articles, podcasts, parenting guides, and more.
- Resources for Non-Black Asians on Anti-Blackness
- Letters for Black Lives: Templates to discuss anti-blackness to families
- Teaching for Black Lives: Curriculum and teaching resources
- #GetFreeWrites: List of writing prompts on police brutality and racist violence by the Dark Noise Collective
- 20+ Allyship Actions for Asians to Show Up for Black Community
- Black & Asian American Feminist Solidarities: A Reading List by Black Women Radicals and the Asian American Feminist Collective
If you can donate, here are places where you can support:
- Bail Funds/Legal Help by City
- The National Bail Project
- Black and Pink Bail Fund
- National Bail Out Fund - Free Black Mamas
- Official George Floyd Memorial Fund
- Reclaim the Block
- Black Visions Collective
- North Star Health Collective
- Louisville Bail Fund
- Migizi Communications (a Native American non-profit whose building was lost in the residual fires)
- We Love Lake Street
- CTUL
- MPD 150
- Unicorn Riot
- Atlanta Solidarity Fund
- Montgomery, AL Bailout
For more suggestions on where to donate, we suggest looking at the National Resource List or Bail Funds by City.
With gratitude to Michelle Lin for her help in compiling these resources.
Please feel free to email info@kundiman.org if you have other resources or places to donate that you feel should be shared. We're happy to continue to update this list as a collective.
Let's talk. Let's write. Let’s stand in solidarity with those who need it. There is still so much work to be done, and we have faith that we will do it.
With radical love and in solidarity,
Kundiman