BLACK LIVES MATTER
May 2020
A LETTER FROM OUR FOUNDER:
In the wake of the George Floyd murder and in the midst of Black Lives Matter protests, we at Engines for Change have been doing what we can to support our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) friends, family, and communities. We believe it is our responsibility as human beings to do our due diligence, to educate ourselves on civil and human rights injustices, and to do what we can to protect the lives and livelihoods of those around us. As the Founder of Engines for Change, I created this organization as a platform for motorcyclists to have a positive impact on the world. Right now, I believe the positive impacts that the world needs are more compassion, open-mindedness, humility, unity, and action. We need to take actionable steps to support our BIPOC communities in ways that we have never fully achieved as an industry or a country.
On an organizational level, we have been coordinating with our PPE suppliers and attending protests to hand out face shields, face masks, and hand sanitizer, so that protestors can protect themselves both from COVID and from any brutality or violence that they may encounter. We are continuing to coordinate logistics of PPE and groceries for COVID relief. If you are interested in volunteering with us, please reach out.
On a personal level, I have begun to listen more closely, to read more, to research more, and to try to broaden and deepen my understanding of race and privilege. I have been following BIPOC influencers, activists, and educators, and compiling resources and recommendations that they have so that I may better educate myself. I am grateful for the feedback, guidance, information, and vulnerability that my BIPOC friends have given me, especially in the last couple weeks. It is not their job to educate me, yet they have been patient and forthcoming in sharing their knowledge and experiences.
To help others educate themselves and take action in their own ways, I have compiled a list of resources and suggestions for how to support the BLM movement. This is not an exhaustive list, but I hope that it can serve as a starting point for those who want to take the first steps. If you have resources to add, please contact us.
Face shields have been donated by PPE4NYC for each of the protests we have attended. If you would like to help PPE4NYC to continue donating, please visit their website.
For those who want to support our BIPOC community within the motorcycling industry but do not know where to start, here are some suggestions for how to do so:
There are Black-run motorcycle nonprofits you can donate to. One of the NGOs I admire most is B360 Baltimore, which uses dirt bikes to teach STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) to disconnected youth, and to train adults in a new trade. Right now they are fundraising to open a dirt bike facility in Baltimore so that their dirt bike community can ride safely and legally. You can donate to them here: https://www.b360baltimore.org/donate
There are small Black-owned businesses that are putting themselves on the line to help others. For example, Dapper Tours in New York City is typically a sidecar tour company. However, during COVID, Will Davis (the Founder) has put his own company on the line to offer free rides to medical staff so they can safely travel to and from work on the front lines. You can help fund his cause here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/safe-amp-sanitary-sidecar-rides-by-dapper-tours-nyc/share
There are Black-owned apparel companies such as Kynsho. The company’s Founder, George Crichlow, has shifted his operation from making motorcycle neck cowls to making face masks and mask straps. They have been vetted as a supplier by the World Supply Chain Federation as a PPE supplier, and they have the capacity to produce 20,000 masks a month. Retailers can carry his products, and individuals can buy his products here: https://www.kynsho.com/shop. Other apparel companies will be included in the full list that I will publish soon, so that you can buy from them, as well.
There are publications dedicated to People of Color in the motorcycling industry, such as Black Girls Ride, which rely on advertising and events to operate. Companies can advertise with them or sponsor their events, individuals can read and share their content and attend their events.
There are Black and Brown journalists, filmmakers, and photographers within the motorcycling industry. Companies can work with them, and individuals can share their work and credit the creators.
Motorcycle brands can facilitate discussion, listen to their BIPOC employees, and ask themselves the hard questions - Do we employ People of Color? Do we know of People of Color who ride? Do we financially support their businesses and nonprofits? If you do, then know that we, your customers, want to hear their stories, thoughts, and opinions. We want to support them. If your answer to those questions is ‘no,’ you should take a hard look at your company values and consider aligning them with the values of the new generation of riders who are rapidly becoming your predominant customers.
For those who want to support the Black Lives Matter movement at large - beyond the motorcycling industry - there are many, many ways to do so:
There are many petitions that you can sign and emails that you can send to demand justice for police brutality. This takes very little effort, and yet it can have far-reaching impacts, especially when done by many people. Here is one list of petitions you can sign, although there are many more that are just a Google search away.
Donate to the ACLU, Black Lives Matter, NAACP, the George Floyd Memorial Fund, or any number of other organizations that support racial justice. You can find a few lists here and here and here and here, and there are many more resources online.
For those who want to be more physically involved and present, there are protests, marches, and vigils happening around the world on a daily basis. I encourage you to do the work to find some in your area. If you want to attend a NYC protest, you can find them here. Note that the protests are only listed the night before. This is to help prevent subversion from white supremacist groups and law enforcement.
In NYC, Engines for Change volunteers (myself included) have been attending protests and handing out face shields supplied by PPE4NYC and hand sanitizer from Moto Spirits. These can protect protestors from both COVID and pepper spray. If you are in NYC and would like to help with these efforts, please contact us. If you would like to help financially, please consider donating to PPE4NYC and/or Moto Spirits so that they can afford to continue donating their time and materials.
Be aware of the mental health issues that Black individuals and communities face. Our friends at Sunshine Behavioral Health recently shared with us their resource page on Mental Health Issues Facing the Black Community.
Make sure you are registered to vote. Even if you have registered in the past, you may have been subject to voter purging, where you are illegally wiped off rolls and prevented from voting in elections. It does not hurt to confirm your voter registration. Once you are registered, MAKE SURE YOU VOTE! Much of the change in your communities happens on the local, district, and state levels, which is also where your vote holds more weight. It took centuries of struggle for BIPOC citizens to get the right to vote. Honor this civil right and vote for policies and officials who support racial justice.
Educate yourself. For many of us, these past few weeks have been a long-overdue wakeup call. For Caucasians such as myself, we are privileged in that we can choose to learn about racial inequality. It is a choice that we should make. We can support our BIPOC communities by reading as much as we can, asking the right questions, and listening to our BIPOC friends, neighbors, and leaders.
READING LIST
Below is a list of resources that have been shared with me or that have been shared by BIPOC activists and educators. If you use these resources, please consider donating to the individuals or organizations that published them. They are being generous in offering these educational materials open-source, and we should support them financially.
I hope that these resources may help others to learn what I have learned about systemic racism, history, and current events. I am working my way through this list with a conscious effort to keep an open mind and to have the humility to recognize that I do not know everything. I hope you will do the same.
‘The Anti-Racism Starter Kit,’ by Where Change Started
Antiracism Resources, courtesy of Where Change Started
Antiracism Resources, compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker & Alyssa Klein and published by Good Good Good Co. This includes many articles books, podcasts, films, tv shows, organizations, and so on.
‘Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man,’ by Emmanuel Acho
‘Black Photographers Covering Protests 2020,’ compiled by various sources
‘Police,’ episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
*Note that this list is a work-in-progress, and there are many additional resources listed within the links above. If you have resources or recommendations to add to this list, please contact us. Note that we will not be adding any ‘All Lives Matter’ materials. If you do not understand this decision, this video is a good place to start to learn why ‘All Lives Matter’ is problematic. I would be happy to send you more resources privately if you would like to further your understanding of the issue.
I hope that these suggestions and resources will help you in your own form of support. Please contact me if you would like to discuss any of this further. Now is the time to have these conversations if you are not already engaged in them.
Thank you,
Kirsten Midura
Founder, Engines for Change