My heart is aching…

My older child came home last night…from Minneapolis. With stories of horror and anguish and also of beauty and hope and communities coming together and taking care of their own.

My heart is aching for all of the suffering – for George Floyd and his family, for the communities under attack, for how hard it is to be a person of color in our f—d up country, for all of the pain and hardship that I’ve not come close to experiencing and that we must make space for and we must find a way to heal.

My heart is hopeful as my activist child tells me that they’re hopeful. That there is a way for things to change.

I’m finding ways that I can help, that I can give back, that I can fight the fight. I’m going to find more. (Ping me if you want to hear about some of them – and I’ve pasted many of them below.)

Yes, I’m still doing all I can to send love to all I can. I’m so grateful for the ways that I can help heal some wounds with to the moon and back (again today, another Second Gen reached out to me with the “does being in a cult mess you up, or am I just messed up?” question). I’m lucky that the work I do helps crack open some people’s awareness to some of what is broken. I’m determined to have more of those conversations and to push my thinking and others’ thinking further and further. And I know that this isn’t enough. I’m determined to find more.

May this be a catalyst for change. (And thank you for your patience with all that I’ve said poorly here. I do believe the only way we’ll get anywhere is if we all try…)

My heart is aching…and I’m looking toward a future of love and safety and freedom for all.

I’d love to hear your thoughts, and please share this post with others if it resonates with you!

ADVOCATE
Here are some scripts you can use to make calls and email. These were compiled by Ollie of Fatty Packs by Ollie.

For District Attorney Mike Freeman
call 612-348-5550
email citizeninfo@hennepin.us

Hello, my name is _____, I’m writing because I demand accountability for the racist murder of George Floyd. I demand you press charges against all 4 of the officers involved in the incident, including Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao. George Floyd should be alive today, and all cops involved must be held accountable for his murder, in order to get justice for George’s family and prevent brutality and violence from happening in the future. Thank you.

For Minneapolis Police Union
call 612-788-8444
email: info@mpdfederation.com

Hello, my name is _____, I am writing to you because I demand action for the racist murder of George Floyd. I demand that you hold Minneapolis police officers accountable now and in the future to assure this never happens again. George Floyd should be alive today, and all cops involved must face consequences for his murder, in order to get justice for George’s family and to prevent this brutality and violence from happening in the future. Thank you.

For Mayor Jacob Frey
Call 612-673-2100
or use contact form of his website

Hello, my name is _____, I’m writing because I demand accountability for the racist murder of George Floyd. I urge you to defund the Minneapolis Police Department during the special budget session and instead invest in community programs that will help reduce the amount of violence in Minneapolis. George Floyd should be alive today, and we must start providing more support towards community efforts in order to prevent this brutality and violence from happening in the future. Thank you.

CONNECT
Connect with your loved ones who have been directly impacted by this week’s events, check in with friends or family who are involved in direct action or who are still going to work, see if they need any support or friendly encouragement from you.

Get on social media and follow local organizers and organizations, and amplify their work and words to your own socials, so that your followers in other parts of the country can engage with real information about these events – the mainstream media coverage is skewed on this, and it is important to share the reality of what is happening to our community.

Challenge your family, your friends, the people in your communities on social media, have the difficult conversations where you confront people about what they are doing tangibly to show up for the community right now. Send this email, or other resources to people and tell them to donate, encourage them to send supplies. IT IS A POWERFUL ACT TO SPEAK OPENLY ABOUT YOUR SUPPORT AND INVESTMENT IN OUR COMMUNITY RIGHT NOW.

Share this leaflet put together by Merit Thursday of Video Variant far and wide, with your neighbors, family and friends around the twin cities as a helpful way to consider all the alternative options to ever calling the cops.

GIVE FINANCIALLY IF YOU CAN
Even small amounts like $5 join with the contributions of others to have a major impact.
George Floyd Memorial Fund
Black Visions Collective
Reclaim the Block
MN Freedom Fund
Headwaters Foundation
MN Youth Collective
Lake Street Repairs/Clean Up
Protest Supplies (medical, PPE, anti-gas, going directly to medic stations in MPLS and STP)