At Xomad, we stand for a culture of diversity and inclusion. This means we embrace all ethnicities and cultures and love having a diverse team. We are saddened about the injustices that continue to occur and we want to be a part of creating change to eliminate racism and support justice.
To help educate ourselves, we have gathered a few resources that we thought we would share with you, and gathered some immediate action items we all can take to help create lasting change.
SHOW YOUR SOLIDARITY
Safely join in protests in your area, share your support on social media with resources for others to help, repost content from leaders of this movement to help their message be spread, and/or volunteer your time.
To help with the volunteering, here are a few websites that can help match you to volunteering opportunities:
DONATE TO ORGANIZATIONS
There are many great organizations out there, both locally and nationally. A great resource for finding NGO’s to support is Charity Navigator. It will show you how transparent an organization is, the charity’s rating, and their public financials.
And to start, here are just a few that you can donate to, join, and support:
- American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU works in courts, legislatures, and communities, to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
- Black Lives Matter. BLM is a global organization and movement to eradicate white supremacy and build local power by intervening in situations where violence is inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.
- Campaign Zero. Campaign Zero is a police reform campaign aimed at reducing police violence.
- Color of Change. As the nation’s largest online racial justice organization, Colors of Change works to move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America.
- Communities United Against Police Brutality. CUAPB provides assistance to individuals and families dealing with the effects of police brutality by influencing the media to tell the stories of survivors and by bringing together families and survivors in a local network to provide ongoing support and empowerment.
- Know Your Rights Camp. KYRC’s mission is to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization, and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders.
- NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans.
- National Police Accountability Project. NPAP is a non-profit and project of the National Lawyers’ Guild, with a mission to promote the accountability of law enforcement officers and their employers for violations of the Constitution and laws of the United States.
- The Bail Project. The Bail Project is a non-profit organization designed to combat mass incarceration by disrupting the money bail system – one person at a time.
- Fair Fight. Fair Fight brings awareness and advocacy to the public on election reform, and engages in voter education programs and communications.
- Equal Justice Initiative. EJI is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.
- United Nations. The United Nations is an international organization committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards, and human rights.
SIGN PETITIONS
Your voice matters and can make a difference. Signing petitions is a great way to show politicians how we all care about this matter. Here are some links to search for relevant petitions:
- Black Lives Matter
- Change
- The Petition Site
- Amnesty International
- Move On
- Action Network
- Organize For
- Color of Change
EDUCATE YOURSELF AND SHARE RESOURCES
Knowledge is power. As the Black Life Matters website reads, “When You’re Done: Educate Yourself. This Doesn’t Go Away Once The Topic Isn’t ‘Trending.’”
While we all have more time at home right now, take that time to learn about the history of systemic racism, read up on why people are protesting, check out the many sources about police brutality, racial inequality and historical injustice and take some time to listen to and absorb the stories and messages coming from the Black community.
There are millions of educational resources available. Below are a collection of books, podcasts, and films to kickstart your learning. As you seek to get educated on racism and injustice, please be sure to first check that your information sources are credible and true.
Books
- How to Be an Antiracist, by Ibram X. Kendi
- So You Want to Talk About Race, by Ljeoma Oluo
- Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson
- White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo
- Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism from the Inside Out, by Ruth King
- America’s Original Sin, by Jim Wallis
- Sister Outsider, by Audre Lorde
- Your Silence Will Not Protect You, by Audre Lorde
Films + Videos
- When They See Us, on Netflix
- 13th, on Netflix
- American Son, on Netflix
- Selma, on Amazon Prime
- The Black Panther: Vanguard of the Revolution, on Amazon Prime
- The Hate You Give, on Hulu
- How to Deconstruct Racism, One Headline at a Time, via TedTalk
- LA 92, on Netflix
- TEDtalk: Let’s get to the root of racial injustice
- Systemic Racism Explained
- Middle Ground: Can Black Lives Matter & Law Enforcement See Eye To Eye?
Podcasts
- Code Switch
- 1619 (New York Times)
- EJI’s Lynching in America
- The Appeal’s Justice in America
- A Decade Of Watching Black People Die
Blog Post
HAVE CONVERSATIONS
Don’t stop talking about this issue. By continuing to speak to others, even after the protests die down, you are helping to educate others and create allies for the cause.
- How to Tell Someone You Love They’re Being Racist
- Race Talk and Facilitating Difficult Racial Dialogues
- Eight Lessons for Talking About Race, Racism, and Racial Justice
- The 8 R’s of Talking About Race: How to Have Meaningful Conversations
- Race Matters: How to Talk About Race
And if you have children, please educate them as well. We know this is a difficult conversation and suggest researching online for some resources to help. One source we have found is The Conscious Kid.
VOTE!!!
Again, your voice matters! Who you vote for can help change policies and the future. Learn about your local politicians, look at their voting history, read about their policies, and learn about what they stand for, before casting your vote.
Here are two resources to help with initial research about your local politicians:
NOW is the time to act, now is an opportunity to learn about systemic racism by listening, learning, and amplifying black voices. Above all, it’s important that brand leaders figure out how they will play their part in taking action to support the Black community during these trying times. Join us in self-education and driving lasting change! #BlackLivesMatter