On a normal Monday, we’d be bringing you a record label profile. But this doesn’t feel like a normal Monday. The murder of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis is yet another horrific event in a seemingly constant stream of atrocities perpetrated against black people in the United States, often by the police. Amy Cooper calls the police on Christian Cooper for asking her to leash her dog in Central Park. Ahmaud Arbery is murdered in cold blood while out for a run. Breonna Taylor is murdered in her own home in the middle of the night by police. These events are all happening against the backdrop of the Coronavirus pandemic, where people of color are dying at significantly higher rates than white people.
We will be back later this week with regular content; this blog was created to support artists and draw attention to their music, and we want to continue with that mission during this time. We believe that art can open our hearts and minds to other points of view, making us more empathetic human beings. But today we ask that you think about what is happening in the world and what you can start to do to help. Take time to begin educating yourself. Make your voice heard, and donate your money and time to causes fighting for justice on the front lines. Below are some resources to help get you started.
- Minneapolis Freedom Fund, a Minnesota organization that is paying bail for protestors in Minneapolis.
- Black Visions Collective, a black, trans, and queer-led social justice organization and legal fund from Minneapolis
- Reclaim the Block, a Minneapolis based group that advocates for defunding the police and moving those funds to other areas of the city’s budget that actually promote community health and safety
- Northstar Health Collective, a St. Paul organization that provides medical services at protests
- A directory of Black Lives Matter chapters across the country
- National Bail Fund Directory, a directory of local bail funds
- Campaign Zero, a organization working to end police violence
- MPD150 Zine on what a Police-free future might look like
- The End of Policing by Alex S. Vitae, currently free in e-book form
- A guide to protesting safely from Vice
- A guide for white people looking to protest in solidarity during this time
- GoFundMes for George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery