We are deeply saddened by the senseless killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery, Riah Milton, Dominique Fells, Oscar Grant, Elijah McClain, and the countless others before them. Lark Traditional Arts stands in solidarity with the communities and families who have lost loved ones, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the global protests against systemic racism and police brutality.
We encourage you to find ways to support Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), and the organizations committed to defending and protecting them. There are many forms our individual and collective support can take. It is our hope that this list of resources will help people explore these topics and expand their knowledge.
Musical influences
- The Black Banjo Reclamation Project
“Black People reclaiming our history on our own accord for Black People. That means we are not looking at the banjo through a white lens because the history goes back farther than the banjo in America.”
http://blackbanjoreclamationproject.org/ - Native Hip Hop
“The original showcase for indigenous rap and hiphop across the globe.”
https://www.nativehiphop.net/
Further reading
- ‘The 13th’ Documentary by Ava DuVernay (available on Netflix)
How the Thirteenth Amendment led to an epidemic of mass incarceration in the United States
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/10/ava-duvernay-13th-netflix/503075/ - ‘So You Want to Talk About Race’ by Ijeoma Oluo
In this New York Times bestseller, Ijeoma Oluo offers a hard-hitting but user-friendly examination of race in America
Black-Owned Bookstores you can support right now (via Refinery29) https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/06/9851084/black-owned-bookstores-independent-online - Don’t be a Bystander: 6 Tips for Responding to Racist Attacks
https://bcrw.barnard.edu/videos/dont-be-a-bystander-6-tips-for-responding-to-racist-attacks/ - The 1619 project
A series of articles and podcasts that reframes the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/1619-america-slavery.html
Fundraising & resources
- Showing Up for Racial Justice – National
https://www.showingupforracialjustice.org/donate.html
“We work to connect people across the country while supporting and collaborating with local and national racial justice organizing efforts. SURJ provides a space to build relationships, skills and political analysis to act for change.” - Black Visions Collective – Minnesota
https://www.blackvisionsmn.org/
“BLVC is a Black-led, Queer and Trans centering organization whose mission is to organize powerful, connected Black communities and dismantle systems of violence. We do this through building strategic campaigns, investing in Black leadership, and engaging in cultural and narrative organizing.” - NAACP Legal Defense Fund – National
https://www.naacpldf.org/
“The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. is America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice.”
Bay Area specific resources
- The East Oakland Collective
https://www.eastoaklandcollective.com/
The East Oakland Collective is currently raising money to bail out protesters and is bringing meals to those on the front lines of the protesting and organizing, including Black- and POC-owned businesses in downtown Oakland. - Black Earth Farms
https://www.blackearthfarms.com/
A grassroots Pan-African and Pan-Indigenous farming collective, Black Earth Farms works to educate and train community members to build autonomous, chemical-free food systems throughout the Bay Area. - National Lawyers Guild, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter
https://nlgsf.org/
We defend the rights of people, communities, organizations and the movement to protest and organize against police and state violence, repression, injustice and neglect, including racism, sexism, homo/transphobia, ableism, xenophobia, colonization, occupation, displacement, incarceration, poverty and exploitation of people and land.