The murder of George Floyd by police in the US sparked a powerful response from the Black Lives Matter movement and communities of colour. The following resources were gathered by the Commons Librarians in 2020 to give context to the US situation as well as related struggles in Australia.
For updates follow @Blklivesmatter on Twitter and read news about the Black Lives Matter movement on Al Jazeera and the Guardian.
If you want to learn more about the issues at play in the US currently the Who Do You Serve, Who Do You Protect? Police Violence and Resistance ebook is free to download.
The Racial Equity Tools site (US) has a wealth of resources to inform and support anti-racist action, including sections on Structural Racism, White Privilege and Movement Building.
To support persuasive progressive communication in this moment see the ASO Communications and Race Class Narrative Action messaging guide.
For US focused resources for white people see 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice and Anti-racism resources for white people. These scaffolded anti-racism resources group resources and actions related to different levels of white identity development.
In Australia, Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week happened recently. Celeste Liddle shares reflections on the ‘con’ in reconciliation and the opportunity to ‘recognise some painful truths and try to make them right’.
To learn about Australian deaths in custody, police use of force, and racial profiling see research gathered by the Police Accountability Project.
“Deaths inside” is a database which tracks every known Indigenous death in custody in every jurisdiction of Australia from 2008 – 2021.
If you’re a white Australian keen to address white supremacy you can support actions, amplify voices, and donate to First Nations and People of Colour led organisations. Here are some practical ways you can support Aboriginal Lives Matter. For many more resources see How to learn from Indigenous people about the Black Lives Matter movement in Australia.
Paying the Rent is a way of providing reparations to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
These videos from Robbie Thorpe and Gary Foley as well as the book Decolonizing Solidarity give some direction to non-Indigenous supporters of Indigenous struggles.
Solidarity membership is a way to support Democracy in Colour while learning about privilege and effective solidarity along with other white people.
For longer reads see Reading’s Books to help you understand & fight white supremacy.
Contact the librarians if you have suggested additions to this article.
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