May 13, 2015, Let’s Talk: At the Heart of Movement Building, The Movement Strategy Center
I am an ally in the movement for Black lives, so social and alternative media are my required reading. It’s there – not in the shamefully racist and sensationalistic corporate media – where I find reporting from the streets and movement perspectives from progressive Black leaders. Even if I’m far away from a particular struggle, social and alternative media help me connect the dots to wherever I am. Whether I’m in the grocery store or at a family barbeque, I need to be grounded and hopeful as I engage people around me to support this powerfully important movement.
I’m always glad when I get asked, “Is there anything that could really make a difference?” because there is so much coming from the movement for Black lives.
Looking at the published principles, platforms, and demands of groups leading the movement for Black lives helps me to keep track of the solutions emerging. I can see that, like any movement, different communities and organizations offer slightly different solutions that reflect different situations and perspectives. While each statement has its own emphasis and nuance, there is an organic similarity among solutions rising across this movement moment, an opportunity for deep and lasting systemic and cultural change, with words and ideas echoing among people who may have never even met each other.
