“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
— Nelson Mandela
Black Lives Matter.
“There comes a time when silence becomes betrayal.”
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Black Lives Matter” - What is it?
The Black Lives Matter Foundation was “founded in 2013 in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s murderer” (learn more about Trayvon Martin here). Although their presence is most noted in the United States, the foundation is a global organization in the US, UK, and here in Canada. Their mission is “to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilante” (learn more about white supremacy and systemic racism here; here). This is, in part, done by the numerous Chapters spread across cities in the US and Canada.
Recently, the Black Lives Matter ‘movement’ has re-surged due to the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor, to name a few.
Visit here to learn more about BLM’s background.
Visit here to learn more about their financial ventures.
Black Lives Matter - Protests
This map serves as an interactive graphic displaying just how widespread BLM protests have been recently (as of May 25, 2020). The protests serve as an opportunity for people to peacefully demonstrate their frustration with police brutality, systemic racism, and other pressing issues in our society (learn more about police brutality here; here).
Although media coverage has been dwindling, there are still protests occurring - most notably in Portland, Oregon. Tension has been high between the protesters, Portland police, and recent intervention from federal agents under the Trump administration (although they have withdrawn as of July 30th). To keep up with the Portland news, feel free to visit this website.
“Develop enough courage so that you can stand up for yourself and then stand up for someone else.”
- Maya Angelou
Vancouver
Get to know the BLM chapter here in Vancouver at https://blacklivesmattervancouver.com/ .
In addition to the BLM chapter, It is always beneficial to know the people at the Vancouver Police Department who have sworn to protect us:
Chief Constable: Adam Palmer
Deputy Chief Constable (Operations Division): Howard Chow
Deputy Chief Constable (Investigation Division): Laurence Rankin
Deputy Chief Constable (Support Services Division): Steve Rai
Visit the home to the VPD website here.
Ways to Help
The website https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/ has brought together ways to contribute to the BLM perspective, such as petitions to sign, donation links and more. Feel free to check them out.
Read with us. Below are news stories, articles, and other forms of media that we feel should be shared. We will be updating them as time passes and/or we get feedback from you:
August 23, 2020 - Jacob Blake, an unarmed Black man, shot 7 times by police (read here)
August 28, 2020 - Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, shoots and kills two at Kenosha Protest (read here)
September 23, 2020 - Breonna Taylor & Kentucky Grand Jury Indictment (read here)
. . .
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.”
- Malcolm X
Feedback
Education is the first step towards appropriate action. This action will be what begets change.
Have questions and/or concerns? Please contact us to let us know about any information you believe should be shared to help us all in our continuous responsibility to stay educated.
Indigenous Topics.
Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
To read to Final Report of the National Inquiry: https://www.mmiwg-ffada.ca/final-report/
Art work by Tristen Jenni @tristen.jenni.art
Read more about the Calls to Action outlined in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, and see how you can make commitments to revealing and bettering the wrongdoings of Canada in Indigenous communities: http://www.trc.ca/assets/pdf/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf
Anti-Asian
In The News.
In the backdrop of religion persecution and atheist doctrines imposed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the Uighurs, one of the fifty-five minority ethnic groups, have been banned from practicing their religious customs and been antagonized as thieves, religion extremists, and terrorists in order to justify and conceal the cultural genocide crime the CCP has committed since as early as 2014. In 2017, the Chinese government started to take more stringent measures towards the erasure of the Uighurs. In 2017 alone, two million Uighurs were being detained in widespread ‘reeducation’ camps across the northwestern autonomous region Xinjiang. Most people in the camp have been arrested with no official charges against them. Reports from detainees have detailed extremely harsh conditions, including instances of torture and interrogation. Uighur women especially are being targeted: sexual abuse and coerced sterilization were common. Those who have fled have described having to denounce Islam and pledge support for the Chinese government and learn Mandarin inside camps. The United Nations and other governing bodies around the world have called for China to shut down the camps, to respect religious freedoms, however larger corporations like Apple and Nike have been hesitant to hold China accountable and prioritize economic interests.
What Can You Do?
Ask your NGO, investor, and trade group to end the complicity in Uighur forced labor and endorse the call to action on human rights abuses in Xinjiang:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfjkXyB1_dKTckcVW2EULnaQYEv_5E_IyxPdCxZKh-EriUPUg/viewform
This matters!! 80% of cotton made in China is from Xinjiang.
Sign These Petitions:
Beijing Olympics: The choice is simple: respect Uyghur rights and close the camps, or lose the 2022 Winter Games. No right, No Games: http://chng.it/C7WHZWYq4z
Write a personal message to urge the Norwegian Oil Fund to divest from the Chinese tech companies that abet Beijing’s crackdown on Uyghurs: https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/uyghurs_norway_divestment/
Uighurs have been forced to labor in fashion industry. Sign the free Uighurs from forced labor petition: https://www.freedomunited.org/advocate/free-uyghurs/
Donate to Uyghur Human Rights Project: https://uhrp.org/support
Volunteer/intern with UHRP: https://uhrp.org/volunteer-internship
Beirut.
Follow the Links to donate:
Race and Covid-19.
Covid-19 has been shown to disproportionately affect Black communities in Toronto. Watch this video to find out why this happens and what needs to change.