In April, I wrote about anti-Black racism and white supremacy and the role that systemic factors play in our physical health. Just as communities were reeling from COVID-19 and the news of Ahmaud Arbery's murder, another wave of Black murders rolled in, this time at the hands of police across the country. George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Tony McDade. These names are added to the unnumerable other Black people, some children, who have been killed by the police.
As some are waking up to the violent realities and oppressive history of policing for the first time, others have been working for decades to make their communities safer by working to defund or abolish the police. In Minneapolis, where George Floyd was killed and where an international uprising against police violence began, the city council has announced "their intent to disband the police department and invest in proven community-led public safety." The same Minneapolis city council that boasts both the first openly trans Black woman (Andrea Jenkins) and the first openly trans Black man (Phillipe Cunningham) elected to public office in the United States. These folks, along with so many others in their community, have been working on this issue for so long, and the visibility and outrage of this moment has offered a tipping point to propel them toward their goals.
A new world is possible. I see it taking shape before my eyes.
And like any truly transformative movement, those most impacted by the violence they are trying to transform are at the center, leading the way.
This month I'd like to share a list of actions and resources to help you plug into this movement for transformation from wherever you enter the conversation. I will leave you with the same question I left you with last month because it is still relevant: How can we use this moment to ensure that these realities (racial health disparities, police violence) are not forgotten when this current crisis has passed? I'm listening, learning, and taking action, and I hope you are too.
(Side note: I didn't realize how timely the start of my supervision and consultation group, Trauma, Oppression, and the Therapeutic Relationship would be. I am beyond grateful to have a group of other providers to process with regularly during this time. I'm exploring adding an additional group on either the 2nd Friday or 2nd Tuesday of the month starting in July. Please reach out if you're interested in taking a deeper dive into these topics in a structured, facilitated group format.
MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS RESOURCES
Stop Hesitating: A Black therapist offers guidance to white therapists and others. Asheville-based therapist, Elizabeth McCorvey, has created a one-page guide for white therapists about how to engage black clients about racial trauma. Read a Q&A with Elizabeth about the guide and then read it for yourself.
A Therapist Like Me has announced their next round of psychotherapy voucher applications, which will be available 6/17/20 by 7pm. (Nuestra aplicación también será disponible en Español.)
The Okra Project is dedicating $15,000 to create the Nina Pop Mental Health Recovery Fund and the Tony McDade Mental Health Recovery Fund, emergency mutual aid funds that raise money to pay for one-time mental health therapy sessions with licensed Black therapists.
LOCAL ASHEVILLE RESOURCES
Asheville in Black has created a petition calling city leaders to vote against a budget increase for the Asheville Police Department and commit to a strategic plan create and fund viable alternatives to policing.
POLICING: REFORM, DEFUNDING, & ABOLITION
Reimagining Policing in the Wake of Continued Police Violence, A Conversation with Obama and other community leaders, including Phillipe Cunningham from the Minneapolis City Council discussing community-led alternatives to policing. This 90 minute discussion lays out a range of alternatives to the current state of policing, backed up by data.
List of publications by Mariame Kaba, a leading voice in prison and police abolition. This is a great place to start if the idea that the world would be safer without prisons and police is new or strange to you.
BAIL FUNDS
The National Bail Fund Network is made up of over sixty community bail and bond funds across the country. We regularly update this listing of community bail funds that are freeing people by paying bail/bond and are also fighting to abolish the money bail system and pretrial detention.
Black & Pink National Bail Fund is a national prison abolitionist organization dedicated to dismantling the criminal punishment system and the harms caused to LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS who are affected by the system through advocacy, support, and organizing.
For additional and updated resources on these topics, follow Just Conversations on Instagram.