“Acknowledging Your Privilege and Becoming an Ally”: a Guide to Resources for White Folks

Music Supervisor Rob Lowry (Twitter: @robertlowry) was recently inspired by Han Martin‘s (Twitter: @hnicolemartin) “Resources for White Family” post to create his own version of a letter and resources to White friends and family and tweet it to anyone who wanted them.

Good Black News requested and was given permission by Lowry to share his document in its entirety, as especially now Black people are being asked for resources from White colleagues, friends and family, and already have way too much to handle. So why not just shortcut it for everybody?

Lowry’s intro, letter and resources below:

** To everyone reading this: Thank you for taking the time and making the effort to begin having necessary conversations. Please note that this is by no means exhaustive, nor is it “One Size Fits All,” and should be used as a template to revise and repurpose as you see fit.

This particular version is in many ways meant as a very simple spoon-fed entry way into this conversation. This was compiled from several templates and resources across the web.

You’ll see that I’ve started my resources with documentaries and movies as that is the easiest and most efficient media that someone is most likely to consume, especially if they can simply click Netflix and the documentary is waiting for them to stream. Please feel free to share, and I hope this proves to be a useful resource for you and your family and friends. **

Hello Family & Friends,

First and foremost, I hope everyone is healthy and safe. As our country goes through this difficult period, I have taken much time to reflect on my own privilege, racism (conscious or unconscious), and my education and evolution on those issues over the years. The last few days and weeks have understandably intensified those thoughts. This reflection has led me to reach out to my loved ones to engage and discuss how we can be better allies to Black and Brown people (especially those in the LGTBQ+ community) moving forward. 

These conversations can be difficult. My hope is that by sending this message and opening up a dialogue among close family members, we can listen and learn together and figure out how each of us can play a role in supporting these communities who need our support now more than ever. 

These unprecedented times are amplified in communities who directly suffer from racism, police brutality, and oppression on a day to day basis. We know the system is broken and the recent murders of George Floyd , Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Sean Reed, and Tony McDade are a direct result of the system that inherently promotes white supremacy. Below is a graphic to further illustrate how white supremacy expresses itself in our world and how, whether or not we are aware, we contribute to it:

As we all know, these murders are not an isolated incident but, rather, the results that come from a flawed system designed and built to oppress minorities. While protests rage on across the country, it is an opportunity for people with privilege (like our family) to listen, read, and educate ourselves so that we can play a role in promoting anti-racism. It is easy during times like this to look away and wait for things to settle back down and revert to how they were. But we can no longer do that. We have a responsibility to educate ourselves and be proactive in defending and supporting our fellow human beings. We have the ability to take action, invest in anti-racism, support minority communities, condemn racism and oppression and create a better country – for everyone. 

It is not the burden of these communities to educate us; we must educate ourselves. We are lucky enough to live in a time where we have access to a wealth of information that we can use at the click of a button. Below is a list of documentaries, books, and other items readily accessible that we could spend a few hours reading or listening to and thinking about. My hope is that this can lead to a further discussion, as a family, of what we can do to be more supportive of these communities. 

DOCUMENTARIES & FILMS

Here is a list of Social Justice Films & Documentaries to watch. Start with 13th. I would also recommend watching GET OUT, BLINDSPOTTING, DO THE RIGHT THING, 42, THE LAST BLACK MAN IN SAN FRANCISCO, OJ: MADE IN AMERICA, A RAISIN IN THE SUN, DID YOU WONDER WHO FIRED THE GUN?, HALE COUNTY THIS MORNING, THIS EVENING

BOOKS

There is a plethora of literature on this topic – as a quick read and powerful introduction, I recommend Ta-Nehisi Coates “Between The World and Me” (BONUS POINTS FOR ORDERING FROM A LOCAL AND/OR BLACK OWNED BUSINESS RATHER THAN AMAZON). Here are some BLACK OWNED BOOK STORES across the country that could use your help

WHERE TO DONATE:

*Along with these charities, please google local organizations as well as victims’ families GoFundMe accounts that you can donate to and have a huge impact on their lives*

The Ida B. Wells Society – news trade organization dedicated to increasing and retaining reporters and editors of color in the field of investigative reporting

Minnesota Freedom Fund – bail funds for those incarcerated in Minnesota 

Black Lives Matter – mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes

Reclaim The Block – organizes Minneapolis community and city council members to move money from the police department into other areas of the city’s budget

Black Visions Collective –  Black, queer, and trans-led Minnesota nonprofit organizes campaigns to cut police budgets, invest in community-driven safety strategies, train activists, and celebrate Black joy

Campaign Zero – calls on lawmakers on every level to end police violence by implementing comprehensive research-based policy solutions

Know Your Rights Camp – aims to advance Black and Brown youth education and self-empowerment through events and campaigns

Black Youth Project 100 – dedicated to advancing the Black community’s economic, social, political, and educational freedoms, through a Black queer feminist lens

NAACP Legal Fund – legal organization fighting for racial justice

– A list of things to think on, action to take, books to read, movies to watch, ways to create meaningful change within your own community:

What White People Can Do For Racial Justice

– Another doc full of books, podcasts, videos, groups to follow on social media, etc.

ANTI-RACISM RESOURCES FOR WHITE PEOPLE

– PETITIONS & PROTEST TIPS

Here is a list of petitions to sign, numbers to text, and tips if you are planning on peacefully protesting

– Here are bailout funds for a few major cities where protests are happening.

LA: https://gofundme.com/f/peoples-city-council-ticket-fund

Philly: https://phillybailfund.org

Chicago: https://chicagobond.org

Minneapolis: https://minnesotafreedomfund.org/donate

Atlanta: https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/support-justiceforgeorgefloyd-protesters-in-atlanta

New York: https://libertyfund.nyc

Columbus: https://paypal.me/columbusfreedomfun

If you’re wanting to dig deeper, here’s an incredibly thorough list of books, movies, essays, and much more to dive into to better educate ourselves:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hpub-jkm9cLzJWqZSsETqbE6tZ13Q0UbQz–vQ2avEc/preview?pru=AAABcoBG9OU*YypkiA00BRU9faLUiF09Jw

Thank you all for taking the time to read, listen and engage.