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'Trust, Consistency, and Accountability' : Darnell Moore, David Johns, and Steven Pargett Discuss Black Liberation, Movement Work, and Love at The Root Institute
“We say ‘protect Black women,’ but what does that look like in action?” —Steven Pargett, Creative Director, Black Men Build text We’ve used the hashtag. We’ve bought the T-shirts. We’ve read the think pieces. But how can we, as a society and Black community, actually unconditionally support, respect and protect all Black women? This is…
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Darnell Moore, David Johns and Steven Pargett Examine Black Men, Allyship and the State of Our Communities at The Root Institute
Words matter. And very rarely have I had the pleasure of listening to four people speak with such intentionality and care about supporting all Black people, how racialized and gendered trauma manifests itself, and more. For The Root Institute’s social impact week, Blackbird’s Senior Communications Director Chelsea Fuller is joined in conversation with author and…
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'We Still Live in Katrina': This New Orleans Resident Lived in Life-Threatening Conditions Before the Storm
It’s been 15 years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans, but resident Shannon Rainey lived in a state of disaster decades before the storm ever made landfall. “We see Katrina every day. So the only thing that’s going on with us [is] we just get a new year every year. Nothing has…
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'These Intergenerational Wounds Continue': How Trauma From Hurricane Katrina and COVID-19 Are Affecting Black New Orleanians
The Black experience in America is rooted in trauma. Blacks folks have been the objects of systemic and state-sanctioned trauma beginning in 1619 and existing well into today. There’s no denying the staggering Black maternal mortality rate, effects of weathering and environmental racism on the Black body, as well as the harmful ways police brutality…
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Don't Call 911: America's Policing and Healthcare Systems Fail Black People With Mental Health Challenges
Kayla Moore. Ezell Ford. Deborah Danner. Marcus-David Peters. Pamela Turner. Each of these Black people were killed by police. They all dealt with mental health challenges. In this country, folks with mental health concerns are 16 times more likely to be killed by law enforcement. And as calls to defund and abolish America’s police grow…
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A World of Impunity: How Police Unions Block Meaningful Change and Exert Control
“The ability for these police unions to shield officers from accountability has a direct correlation to the amount of violence police engage in.” —Justin Hansford, J.D. text Police unions are some of the most powerful entities in America. Just to name a few ways how and why that’s the case, consider that police officers have:…
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Ending White Supremacy Requires White People To Realize That Black Liberation Isn't A 'Zero Sum Game'
white supremacy [ hwahyt suh-prem-uh-see, wahyt ] noun: the belief, theory, or doctrine that white people are inherently superior to people from all other racial and ethnic groups, especially Black people, and are therefore rightfully the dominant group in any society. text America loves whiteness. And that “love” is at the expense of everyone else…
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Juneteenth Is Finally Entering the Mainstream American Consciousness. Now Make It An Official Federal Holiday
Forget the 4th of July! Juneteenth is the day that should be celebrated by all as a pivotal point in America’s freedom story. One-hundred-and-fifty-five years ago this year, the last of the enslaved black population in Galveston, Texas received word that they were officially free. Despite the passing of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, which…
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'You Don't Have to Know Somebody to Grieve Them': How Black People Can Process Collective Trauma and Grief
“There is a lot of grieving in the air.” — Alice Mills Mai, LMHC text NYC-based licensed mental health counselor Alice Mills Mai believes the collective grief gripping black people in America right now is almost palpable. From the killing of Ahmaud Arbery to the deaths of cultural icons like Little Richard and Betty Wright,…
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'We're Out Here Risking Our Lives So That They Can Eat': The Realities Of Being An Essential Worker During COVID-19
While many around the globe settle more and more into a life that involves working from home, there’s a certain group of people who aren’t: essential workers. In the United States, the face of our essential workforce is overwhelmingly black with research showing that black folks are more likely to be considered essential workers than…
