We at Phonica are joining the dance music community in Black Out Tuesday on June 2nd 2020. As a record shop covering electronic & dance music, we are indebted to, and have benefited from, black culture & art yet have not done all we can to support black struggle and challenge white bias & racism. Today is not about tokenism for Phonica, just one day of action or a day off from social media, it is our responsibility to always take an active stand against racism, and make a commitment to examine our own attitudes and actions moving forward.
We stand in solidarity with George Floyd, the #blacklivesmatter movement and those fighting against racial injustice & prejudice in the USA, the UK and throughout the world. We will be observing #theshowmustbepaused, taking time to reflect and educate ourselves on how we can further support the stance against racism.
We want to use our platform to share resources or direct you to useful organisations & petitions, and to support the demonstrations going on in London, the UK and worldwide. For those of us in a privileged position, like ourselves, it is time for both action and education, learning how we can support and become better allies.
Below we have included links to organisations where financial contributions can be made, as well as actions that can be taken, and tools to educate.
We know this list is far from comprehensive, if there is something you feel should be included please let us know.
Things we can do:
PROTEST Attend a protest , while respecting social distance – follow #LDNBLM for the latest information or see the poster below.
EDUCATE & LISTEN Educate yourself – check out the official Black Lives Matter website. We have also listed some reading material / resources that we have found useful and enlightening – if you have others to suggest, please share them with us.
SIGN A PETITION There are a number of active petitions , some are listed below, but please check the reading list / google doc links for a more exhaustive list.
DONATE See the links below both in the UK and the USA. Further links are in the more exhaustive lists at Black Lives Matter and the google docs listed below. We have made a donation as part of Vinyl Factory and we encourage others, if they can, to donate to one of the organisations listed below or many others.
SIGN A PETITION:
Charge the Minneapolis Police Officers
Donate funds UK:
Stephen Lawrence Charitable Foundation
Donate funds USA
Reading Material
Me And White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
Ways You Can Help (Via Black Lives Matter)
Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race By Renni Eddo-Lodge
Black & British: A Forgotten History by Olusoga
The Good Immigrant By Nikesh Shukla
A Guide to Allyship: Black Lives Matter
How to support Black Lives in the UK
Anti-Racism resources : A more exhaustive list than what we have provided here
