Hi ,

What a world we live in. Are you as emotionally exhausted as I am? But it's worth it, to become a better human and build a better world.

The last two weeks have been all about listening, learning, supporting, raging, mourning, and more listening and more learning. 

On a visible level, I'm amplifying Black voices in my Instagram Stories and will continue to do so.

But for me, as an extreme introvert, most of my anti-racist work is behind-the-scenes kind of work. 

So I wanted to share with you some of the things I've been doing behind the scenes, not to be performative or get a gold star for being a "good white person", but to set an example of the quiet things we can do as individuals to support this movement. 

Because Instagram and protests aren't (and shouldn't be) the only ways to make a difference and do this work. 

Here's how I'm doing my anti-racist work as an individual:

📚 I'm reading books (White Fragility is first [this is NOT an affiliate link]) and talking about them with white friends who are also committed to doing this internal work.

💸 I'm also making sure I buy these books at full price, because we can't expect these badass educators to do this emotionally intensive work without compensation.

📰 I'm reading articles and the Instagrams of anti-racist educators (currently obsessed with@tiffanyjana and @blairimani) (they've also both got books and Patreons that are going on my list)

👩🏼‍🍳 I'm following more Black online entrepreneurs and creators on Instagram (I can't wait to try this Banana Fritters recipe on My Forking Life and this Dairy Free Coconut Milk Frozen Custard recipe on Black Girls Who Brunch)

👋I'm purging my Following list on Instagram (been needing to do this for a while) and unfollowing anyone who hasn't addressed the Black Lives Matter movement in their feed or (at minimum) on their Stories. Likewise, I'm unsubscribing from email lists who haven't made any kind of statement on their email lists or social media (I'm not interested in supporting or engaging with businesses who don't support my non-negotiable values)

☎️ I'm learning how to call my representatives and make my opinions heard (this sounds silly and small, I know. Like, just call them, right? But for me, extreme introvert that I am, this is a massive hurdle)

Here's how I'm taking action as a business:

✨And as a business, I've decided to make my values explicit, so no one has to guess or infer where I stand on important issues, and BIPOC in my community can feel included and valued.

So I published a list of "Requirements to Work With Me" blog post that I'm pretty damn proud of. (Make special note of the "Don't Be A D*ck" section 😏)

This is the first step in an ongoing journey to conscientiously and intentionally make my business as inclusive as I can. I've learned how important it is to be explicit about our values as business owners in order to do that. So this is me, being explicit. 

So tell me , how are you taking action, both as an individual and as a business? Any articles or books or Instagram accounts that have left you shook? Hit reply and send me the links! 

[And if you're about to respond with something about all lives mattering, please don't, and read this article instead. Still want to reply “aLL liVeS mAtTeR!!@!#!” ?… Please don’t and kindly unsubscribe]

If you're still here, awesome 🤗 I'll be back in your inbox in a couple days with some thoughts on creative process and how it can sometimes feel in conflict with creating strategic and SEOtastic content. Should be a good time.

Until then:

In solidarity,
Claire

PS. If you saw that this email is about taking action against racism and immediate skimmed to the bottom to respond with something about all lives mattering (yep, I see you), please don't, and read this article instead. Still want to reply “aLL liVeS mAtTeR!!@!#!” ?… Please don’t and kindly unsubscribe.