Are you listening?
But, more importantly, are you speaking out?
Since the barbaric death of George Floyd, you’ve most likely been bombarded with social media posts uncovering the cruel, oppressive and harsh realities of the criminal justice system and oppression of Black people in America, UK, and a lot of other places all around the world.
I’m sure a lot of you have been struggling to concentrate, feeling anxious, and found yourselves spiralling into a blackhole of content, with new stories and footage surfacing every single day.
It’s been hard to watch and digest but never has it been so important to continue watching and reading so that we can educate ourselves on the best ways to approach the Black Lives Matter movement and be a true ally to our Black brothers and sisters.
Last week we saw the music industry participate in a day-long blackout and silence to protest against the death of George Floyd and to stand with the Black community.
Today, tomorrow, and all the days after that, we must NOT forget that systemic racism is still very much real and spreading.
Our CEO, Tim Armoo, invites you to check out his recent post on the matter. If you’d like to watch a video created by one of our talented team members representing just a sum of what exists right now not only in America, but all over the world, it will only take a couple minutes of your time. You can find it here.
Here is also some pointers that he has extended to anybody who is looking to help.
Addressing TikTok & content moderation...
There has been a lot of controversy surrounding the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag on TikTok and whether it had previously been blocked or not. Whilst a lot of people have since commented that the image was doctored to appear it has 0 views, a large majority are still not convinced.
TikTok has been criticised on more than one occasion for spreading racist sentiments. From a large stream of offensive Black and Asian stereotype videos, to racial slurs used nonchalantly by TikTok users, and an alarming accumulation of Blackface videos, it appears that TikTok has some really severe issues when it comes to content moderation. If you do happen to come across any of these types of videos, please make sure you report them.
With that said, we have also seen the TikTok community come together under the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag. Several White TikTok stars such as Abby Artistry & Stephen Mckell have participated in raising their fists in solidarity of #BlackLivesMatter to the song ‘Same Love’ by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. This is a message that has been picked up as a duet chain and re-created by millions after receiving 3 billion hashtag views. See some examples below.
Charli Damelio, the biggest TikTok star, has also spoken out in a video and by changing her display picture to ‘Black Lives Matter’ with a clear message that she wants to use her platform to raise awareness on George Floyd and other race-related issues.
We’ve also seen White users speak out on the cause by creating videos from their perspectives of what it looks like to have White privilege and for a White person being stopped by the police VS. a person of colour. See an example below.
Black people have utilised the platform to share their real-life experiences and personal stories living with racism. This has helped White people and other POC to gain some insight into what it’s really like to live in a society that doesn’t cater to you or your needs. Please see some examples below.
How you can ACTIVELY help
If you are contributing in any way to this movement, then keep doing so. But please remember, standing up for equality cannot be characterised by a single post on social media, it’s a full-time job that we must all take responsibility for in all aspects of our lives.
So, i’ll say this:
- Keep signing petitions and donating.
- Keep having conversations with your family and friends to begin undoing years and years of brainwashing and marginalisation.
- Keep calling people out in public and protecting Black culture when they make racial slurs or derogatory comments.
- Keep checking up on your Black peers to make sure they’re okay and that you’re doing what you can.
Important petition links and donation sites:
Do you want to learn more and expand your awareness on the issue? Check out these sources:
13th Documentary on Netflix
When They See Us documentary on Netflix
Who Killed Malcolm X? documentary on Netflix
Explained: The Racial Wealth Gap
Instagram accounts to follow:
@shaunking
@munroebergdorf
@ajabarber
@chakabars
@blackandpodcast
@rachel.cargle
@nowhitesaviours
A note from us
At Fanbytes, we are a team of ethnically diverse young men and women and so diversity is and will always be a core part of our culture, in and outside of the office.
A lot of us have lived through these types of experiences ourselves, whether it’s on a micro-aggressions level or a larger scale, and we are committed to doing whatever we can to finally make a change.
So, on that note, I’d like to say one last thing:
It starts with you.. so pick up a book, educate yourself, and simply extend a hand.
We’re all in this together.
Let's Talk
If you’d like to contribute in any way or would like to get in touch, you can do so below.
