Black Lives Matter

By now, everyone reading this has seen the news. As we write this, across the United States, hundreds of thousands of people are protesting the biased treatment and violence that black Americans face every day from law enforcement and elsewhere in public life. Writing about non-tech topics isn’t normally our thing, but we are human beings first and can’t let this moment pass without voicing our support for those who are speaking out against injustice.

Since videos showed Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin killing George Floyd on May 25 by kneeling on his neck for 8 minutes and 45 seconds, we’ve watched our communities erupt in heartbreak, fear, frustration and anger. The situation isn’t new, and it isn’t going away soon. It’s a human rights issue that affects every one of us, whether it’s personally or through co-workers, friends, family and our communities. According to the National Academy of Sciences, black Americans are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by police than their white counterparts.

Black lives matter. We stand against racism, both systemic and individual, and against police brutality. We don’t consider this a partisan position; to quote Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King, “Racism is not a difference of opinion.”

We also oppose anything that disrupts Americans’ right to protest peacefully or for law-abiding journalists to report on such protests. According to Nieman Lab, U.S. journalists have been attacked at least 130 times by police while covering these events. 

As individuals, we have donated to these funds and we encourage readers who want to help to do the same:

• Campaign Zero: Organization that seeks to reduce police violence through a ten-point plan.
• Black Lives Matter
• The Bail Project: Provides bail money to protesters and others who cannot afford it.
• The Committee to Protect Journalists: Helps journalists covering these and other events. 
• Minnesota Freedom Fund: Specifically helps protesters in Minnesota, but is no longer accepting donations.
• Brooklyn Community Bail Fund

Like our colleagues at Laptop Mag, PC Gamer, Tom’s Guide, GamesRadar, GuitarWorld, Guitar Player and TechRadar, we stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and everyone seeking to end discriminatory policing. 

We also recommend the following resources for learning more about the problems we face:

• Educating ourselves on #BlackLivesMatter
• TED Talk: How Studying Privilege Can Strengthen Compassion
• The Conscious Kid: Teaching Children About Race
• George Floyd and the History of Police Brutality in America
• Fury rooted in long history of racism (Live Science)
• Communities Against Police Brutality
• 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
• Racial Equity Tools: Tons of data sources, curricula 
• What to Bring to a Peaceful Protest
• U.S. Press Freedom Tracker

Not everyone is in a position to donate or peacefully demonstrate. But we are all in a position to educate ourselves, treat each other with love and respect, strive for equality, engage in dialogue that encourages it, and celebrate free speech and the right to peacefully protest.