We deserve life.

A lot of energy is spent pretending that acts of white genocide are the result of a lone gunman or a young boy with mental illness or an isolated act of hatred.

But as Dr King once asked “How many other fingers were on that trigger?”

It’s not acting alone when politicians and the media support and feed into the system of white supremacy. It’s not acting alone when the so many in this country elected a fascist to the highest office of the land. It’s not acting alone when the nation itself was built on white violence. It’s not acting alone when one’s white friends, family and community look the other way while our youth get trained in white nationalism.

If we don’t recognize and reckon with the root cause of our collective suffering and our place in it, we won’t survive, much less heal.

White supremacy is a death cult. And we deserve life.

Let’s get to work.

Kerri (she/her)

Art by @schizophrenic.nyc

1. Demilitarization, decriminalization, decarceration, and defunding the police all help to shrink the sites of armed, white supremacist organizing. Derecka Purnell on the roots of white violence and how we fight it. [click to tweet]

2. For years, we've heard plenty of "you go girl" feminism from major brands, but when it comes to the most fundamental issue of the moment, most companies are deafeningly silent. Corporate support for social Issues is all the rage, except when its abortion rights. [click to tweet]

3. A coalition across Europe is resisting Poland’s abortion ban. Its strategy could foreshadow activism in a post-Roe America. What we can learn from abortion without borders. [click to tweet]

4. Breastfeeding isn’t free — and it isn’t a solution to the national baby formula shortage. The many, many costs of breastfeeding. [click to tweet]

5. U.S. Culture is so deeply patriarchal, we can’t even admit overturning roe is about women. Focusing on other consequences of the overturning of Roe v. Wade makes us forget the SCOTUS’s decision is really about supremacy. [click to tweet]

Here’s a list of Black-led community organizations in Buffalo, NY recommended by the @buffalocommunityfridge who are welcoming monetary donations to assist with their work supporting Black communities in Buffalo and the surrounding area in the wake of the Tops shooting tragedy.

• @wnymobileops: Black woman owned organization offering harm reduction to the most marginalized communities

• @coloredgirlsbiketoo: A radical cycling organization advocating for mobility justice and liberation in marginalized comm and promotes healing of Black/or Color Women and GNBfolks by bike.

• @rooted_in_love_inc: An organization assisting homelessness and underprivileged in the WNY area by providing access to fresh produce and hygiene products free of charge.

• @blrrbuffalo: An intergenerational political home for Black and Brown people in Buffalo, NY

Resources by @humanrightslawyer, Art by @blackgirlvoices

Grateful for the wisdom and support of this community as we move towards collective healing and repair. Here’s a reading list to get you started:

• Grief is Love: Living with Loss, Marisa Renee Lee

• Finding Refuge: Heartwork for Healing Collective Grief, Michelle Cassandra Johnson

• Grieving While Black: An Antiracist Take on Oppression and Sorrow, Breeshia Wade

• My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies, Resmaa Menekam

• Beloved, Toni Morrison

Art by @lamarodowens

Healing is an act of communion. Take care of each other y’all.

Art by @tanyaboigenzahn

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