The killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis on May 25 sparked an uprising of people across the country against systemic racism, police brutality, and injustice. In the midst of a global pandemic, we are now simultaneously in a generation-defining social justice movement that joins together the fight for Floyd with the same fight for Louisville’s Breonna Taylor and all those who came before or since.
With the incredible flurry of events happening right now, I know we are all looking for ways that we can help victims of injustice as well as those demonstrating and working against injustice. So, I wanted to put together a list of organizations and causes that are offering support or asking for your action during this time.
Please note that this list is only a starting point, and it is in no way exhaustive. These are resources that I personally compiled in reference to topics discussed on my show Signal Boost.
In addition to these resources, you may also want to talk to your loved ones and others in the community, reach out to them and ask if there’s a particular cause they’ve supported, and offer to join or match them. Pay close attention to social media posts and take note of trusted resources that emerge—find the signal through the noise. There’s so much more to be found.
This response is a grassroots, community effort, and we’re in it together. Please stay safe and take care of each other.
Direct Support for Kentucky’s Victims
Justice for Breonna Taylor
“Breonna Taylor was an award-winning EMT and first responder in Louisville, Kentucky, who loved helping her patients and her community. Breonna was a dedicated essential worker who survived the front lines of a pandemic that disproportionately kills Black people, only to have her life stolen by police on March 13. Take action and fight for Breonna.”
Justice for David McAtee
“David McAtee was a Black restaurant owner in the Louisville community who was fatally shot by authorities around midnight on June 1. This campaign will do everything in its power to secure as many relief funds as possible for the McAtee family.”
Bail Funds for Protesters
Lexington Bail Fund
“This fund was created to support people arrested at direct actions in Lexington, Kentucky. Contributions will go to the Lexington Housing Justice Collective.”
Louisville Community Bail Fund
“This fund exists to not only bail out folks, but provide post-release support to get them from jail, fed, and to a situation of safety. LCBF also maintains a focus on preventative measures for those targeted by law enforcement and threatened with incarceration. While we work with national networks, we are also one of the only bail funds that rely entirely on support from individuals in our social justice community.”
Cincinnati Bail Fund
“For ongoing demonstrations in Cincinnati, the ACLU of Ohio is directing people to the Cincinnati Bail Fund via a local church. Note that when using this link you will want to select ‘Cincinnati Bail Fund’ as the purpose for your donation.”
National Bail Funds Donation
“Split a donation between 60+ community bail funds, mutual aid funds, and racial justice organizers. If you don’t have much to donate or aren’t sure which is the best place to donate, you can donate here and we will split your donation evenly across multiple bail funds or you can choose specific ones.”
List of Bail Funds
“A grassroots, crowdsourced, nationwide collection of community resources for protesters around the country. This list is intended to be comprehensive. We worked with National Bail Fund Network to ensure the validity of these.”
Mutual Aid for Community Members
Lexington Mutual Aid
“This is a space for community members in Lexington to share short-term needs and support. These locally-led efforts are often sustained by Black and Brown folks, young people, low-income and working class people, immigrants, and others who are most harmed by our economic and political systems.”
Louisville Mutual Aid
“We’re a contingency of organizers, activists, and community members who work deep in the trenches with our folks. This fundraiser supports our organizers who go out daily to support the needs of community members. We support community members in all aspects whether housing, therapy, escape, healthcare and supplies of any kind.”
Mutual Aid Hub
“Mutual aid is a voluntary reciprocal exchange of resources and services that acknowledges no one is expendable and that it benefits the entire community when everyone has their needs met. Our governments may not be coming to save us, but we can save us. Find mutual aid networks and other community self-support projects near you and reach out to these groups directly to get involved, offer resources, or submit needs requests.”
Organizations Supporting Black Lives
Black Lives Matter
“A global organization in the U.S., 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. We have a goal of combating and countering acts of violence and creating space for Black imagination and innovation.”
Black Visions Collective
“A social justice organization led by Black, Trans, and Queer people in affiliation with the Black Lives Matter Global Network and the official chapter in Minnesota. We center our work in long-term systems change campaigns, community engagement, political education, leadership development, and cultural organizing rooted in transformative justice through a Black queer feminist lens.”
Kentucky Fairness Campaign
“We are Kentucky’s LGBTQ advocacy organization. Our primary goal is comprehensive civil rights legislation prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity and to dismantle systemic racism. We were founded by LGBTQ Kentuckians who hold racial justice as core to queer liberation. Black lives matter, and we won’t be silent as Black and Brown Americans are murdered in our streets and homes.”
Movement for Black Lives
“A community fund for Black-led rapid response efforts and investments in ongoing movements. We believe that prisons, police and all other institutions that inflict violence on Black people must be abolished and replaced by institutions that value and affirm the flourishing of Black lives. We believe in centering the most marginalized Black people, including but not limited to those who are trans and queer, women and femmes, currently and formerly incarcerated, immigrants, disabled, working class, and poor.”
NAACP’s We Are Done Dying
“As the world faces unprecedented times and new realities during this global pandemic happening alongside routine brutalization of Black people by police, the health and safety of our people are at an unparalleled risk. The continuance of systematic racism is on display, and our communities are experiencing the worst outcomes on all fronts. We must fight for equality during this uncertain time. We are done dying.”
Unicorn Riot
“A decentralized, nonprofit journalism organization dedicated to covering environmental and societal issues and amplifying the voices of people marginalized by dominant society. We strive to deliver high-quality content to our viewers on climate change, racism, police, poverty, and arts and community. We are currently focused on providing live streams from the front lines of protests in Minneapolis and across the country and going where other news organizations won’t go to deliver the story.”
We Can’t Breathe Coalition
“We are rising together to build a better world. Our vision is for a future where there is no form of injustice or disparities between white communities and people of color, starting in Minneapolis. Our mission is to create a network of multicultural groups imagining and building a future where people, communities, and races coexist without disparities or injustice.”
Further Resources
Lexington Black-Owned Restaurants
“It is time (and has been) to support Black-owned restaurants and businesses. This list of Black-owned restaurants in Lexington should not only be used this week or this month, but forever. This list should be used as a starting point, but then, start a conversation: we need to educate ourselves on the injustices in our country, state, and city.”
Ways You Can Help
“A community-driven, crowdsourced, continuously updated list of resources involving and related to the Black Lives Matter demonstrations, started by a 17-year-old queer activist and student named Nico. Find organizations to support, and when you’re done, educate yourself. This doesn’t go away once the topic is no longer trending.”