We at Fruit stand in solidarity with our Black siblings protesting in America, in solidarity against the everyday violence and oppression directed at Black people by state and non-state agents in not just America, but in Britain too, and across the world 1/

It is not lost on us that as a British-based magazine, it is Britain that has played a significant role in fomenting and exporting the racist logic and violence enacted against Black people all over the world. We cannot forget the violence enacted against Black bodies here too 2/

Those of us who are not Black, we cannot afford to stay silent. The liberation of black folks and queer folks and other minorities is all tied together. It goes without saying that Black people are born with inalienable dignity and humanity - but we are failing them 3/

Nor can we hide in not knowing what to do. Plenty of Black folk on Twitter have been generous in detailing what we as non-Black people can do at this time. Listing some of them here: 4/

FIRST - we need to show up with our £$£. Please consider donating to one of the many community bail funds needing our financial support:

https://www.communityjusticeexchange.org/ 

https://theqgentleman.com/2020/05/bail-funds/amp/?mc_cid=99b6bdd466&fbclid=IwAR3yrxEeXnSi1P475C4P6nBhRa7aZ4xpmL_qfxzSSrlLU8l0VdQc7XiM2Fs#038;mc_eid=854dc9f0e2 5/

SECOND - we need to start reflecting on how we are complicit - either in our actions, our privilege, or our silence - in the violence enacted against Black people globally. WORK ON YOUR ANTI-BLACKNESS. Consider how you benefit from the oppression of others. Educate your people 6/

THIRD - in order to help with the second point - educate yourself! Read Black literature - fiction, non-fiction, poetry.

We're thinking of Claudia Rankine, Toni Morrison, bell hooks, Ta-Nehisi Coates, James Baldwin, Angela Davis, Assata Shakur, Afua Hirsch, Renni Eddo-Lodge 7/

Some more great reading materials suggested in this thread:

https://twitter.com/thebryreed/status/1266071139115241473

8/

REMEMBER: nobody is demanding perfection. but if we want to be anti-racists (and we must because liberation doesn't exist unless it does for all) - we must do the hard, painful work of examining prejudices and eliminating them - both in ourselves and our communities 9/ (end)