Black Lives Matter. Period.

En español

We at the Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona denounce the systemic racism, white supremacy and blatant disregard for human life that targets Black families.

We express our deepest sympathy to families and communities whose loved ones have been so unjustly taken. The overwhelming grief is all too real, and words can never be enough. Black Lives Matter. Period.

We acknowledge that our sentiments and actions as an arts organization are necessary, and yet insufficient to dismantle a legacy of well-resourced systems of oppression and white supremacist structures. After hundreds of years, even the most modest reform of institutional violence has seemed out of reach and difficult to imagine. Which is precisely why it is being imagined together, as a shared and common goal.

At AFTSA, we will add to our efforts to collaborate on this larger project, so that it includes a much better future for our beautiful communities. Because we can all do our part to course-correct and end these injustices, by using our voices, our individual actions, our resources and our desire to be better selves. We recognize that each of us has the power to influence change, and we urge our communities to use this human quality to shape racial justice now, and into the future. All of us have spheres of influence starting with our own behavior, with our families and friends, in our workplace, in our neighborhoods, in our places of worship, in how we show up for one another now and in perpetuity.

We at AFTSA will not be complicit in perpetrating these injustices. To offer your support and solidarity with Black Lives Matter, the following resources made available by frontline organizers are reposted below. We encourage you to donate to victims’ families and community bail funds, get involved with grassroots campaigns, and support nonprofits working toward racial and economic justice. It will take all our work if we are to move forward collaboratively and bring about any change that is invested with meaning. Let’s make this an ongoing practice.

In solidarity,
The Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona

Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/
#BlackLivesMatter was founded in 2013 in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s murderer. Black Lives Matter Foundation, Inc is a global organization in the US, UK, and Canada, whose mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes. By combating and countering acts of violence, creating space for Black imagination and innovation, and centering Black joy, we are winning immediate improvements in our lives.

Action

1. Bail Funds 
   • The Bail Project: The Bail Project, Inc. is a non-profit organization designed to combat mass incarceration by disrupting the money bail system ‒ one person at a time. We believe that paying bail for someone in need is an act of resistance against a system that criminalizes race and poverty and an act of solidarity with local communities and movements for decarceration.
   • Donate to 70+ bail funds: ActBlue Civics has put together a growing list of bail funds, mutual aid funds, and racial justice organizers. Choose to split a donation amongst the list, or allocate specific amounts to individual groups.
   • LGBTQ+ Freedom Fund: Posts bail for LGBTQ people held in jail or immigrant detention and raises awareness of the epidemic of LGBTQ overincarceration.
   • National Bail Fund Directory: A comprehensive list of national and regional bail funds for protestors across the country.
   • The Tucson Second Chance Community Bail Fund (TSCCBF)
2. Black Journalists Therapy Relief Fund: This fund is designed to provide financial assistance for black journalists facing financial hardship who are unable to pay for the mental health support they need during this time.
3. Black-Owned Independent Bookstores: A list of Black-owned independent bookstores across the country to support and patronize.
4. Black Writers: This Twitter thread lists PDFs of Black writing.
5. “End the War on Black people!” Petition: This petition organized by Color of Change demands ending policing of Black communities.
6. George Floyd Memorial Fund
7. Justice for Breonna Taylor Petition
8. Justice for Ahmaud Arbery Fund
9. Mass Liberation Arizona
10. NAACP Legal Defense Fund: The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. is America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans.
11. The Okra Project: The Nina Pop Mental Health Recovery Fund
12. The Okra Project: The Tony McDade Mental Health Recovery Fund
13. PEACE Act: Sign Amnesty International’s petition to tell Congress to restrict the use of deadly force by police and advance the PEACE Act. The bill would bar federal law enforcement from using deadly force unless necessary — as a last resort — to prevent imminent death or serious bodily injury, and reasonable alternatives have been exhausted.

Education

1. Anti-Racism Resources: A document intended to serve as a resource to White people and parents to deepen our anti-racism work. It includes links to articles, books, videos, podcasts, film and television series, and more.
2. The Antiracist Research & Policy Center
3. Black Lives Matter: The Black Lives Matter website provides tools for understanding the movement’s goals and resources for taking action.
4. Equal Justice Initiative: The mission of The Antiracist Research & Policy Center (ARPC) is to convene and team up varied specialists to figure out novel and practical ways to understand, explain, and solve seemingly intractable problems of racial inequity and injustice.
5. Fair Fight
6. Know Your Rights Camp: Our mission is to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders.
7. The Movement for Black Lives: The M4BL website outlines goals for a Week of Action in Defense of Black Lives, provides a Resource for Safety and Infiltration, and more.
8. National Lawyers Guild: The National Lawyers Guild operates Legal Support Hotlines to provide support to those arrested at a political demonstration or planning an action with a high risk of arrest. Find and write down your local NLG chapter’s number as a precaution before attending a demonstration.
9. Protest Notes for White Protestors: American Friends Service Committee lists a few reminders to White people who plan to join the protests.
10. Protest Protection: Harper’s Bazaar published a guide to protecting yourself (and those around you) during a protest in a pandemic—including how to prepare, what to bring, and what to do if the situation gets violent, or if you get arrested.
11. Protest Rights: ACLU lists your rights for organizing, attending, and documenting protests. A Spanish version is also available.
12. #8CantWait: A project by Campaign Zero, #8CantWait cites eight policies that when enacted can decrease police violence, backed by data.
13. Real Talk with Daughters of the Movement: This Facebook Live series, hosted by For Freedoms, talks to women who sat at the feet of some of the most revolutionary leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement.
14. SippCulture: Where do we go from here? article
15. SNaPCo: SNapCo builds power of Black trans and queer people to force systemic divestment from the prison industrial complex and investment in community support.
16. Trans Agenda for Liberation / Trans Law Center: Transgender Law Center is the largest national trans-led organization advocating self-determination for all people.

Well-Being

1. Artist Relief Wellness Videos: Artist Relief is producing weekly videos focused on physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Each video is created by a different artist representing a broad spectrum of creative practices and voices, and includes discussions of movement, meditation, herbalism, sound therapy and music, poetry/writing prompts, and more.
2. Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation: The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation aims to eradicate the stigma around mental health issues in the African American community. They offer free COVID-19 virtual therapy and a directory of mental health providers and programs serving the African American community.
3. Crisis Text Line: The Crisis Text Line provides 24/7 free support for any crisis. A live, trained counselor responds from a secure online platform. Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Counselor.
4. National Suicide Prevention Hotline: The National Suicide Prevention Hotline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress and prevention and crisis resources: 1-800-273-8255. Online chat is also available.
5. The Trevor Project: The Trevor Project provides 24/7 support to LGBTQ youth in crisis, or those in need of a safe and judgment-free place to talk: 1-866-488-7386. Text and chat options are also available.
6. Therapy for Black Girls: This site aims to present mental health topics in a way that feels more accessible and relevant. It features a weekly podcast addressing Black mental health and provides resources to help Black women find a therapist in their area.
7. 44 Mental Health Resources for Black People: Self’s article on “44 Mental Health Resources for Black People Trying to Survive in This Country” lists Black mental health advocates to follow, directories for finding a Black or allied therapist, and tips and reminders for seeking mental support.
8. Live Another Day – Live Another Day was founded with the purpose of providing equal access to life-saving resources. They offer dozens of resources for finding help for mental health and substance use
9. Support for BIPOC Parents –  An extensive resource list curated for BIPOC parents. This guide was put together by the experts at Louisville Addiction Center
10. Resources for Latinx Students – Extensive resources for Latinx college students and their allies, but together byTulip Hill Recovery
11. A Guide for Addressing the Loneliness Epidemic – In May, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a special report on the public health crisis of loneliness in America. T.R.U.E Addiction and Behavioral Health has put together this incredible guide with dozens of mental health and substance use resources that can help.