A matching donation to BLM plus a mini-book club
The Sternal Journal
Temporarily an attempt at legitimate journalism
^^^What do I mean by that subtitle? Well, to some degree I've always wanted/hoped/endeavored for The Sternal to be some real form of journalism.
Of course I am wacky and I love (wanting/hoping/endeavoring) to be funny, but even my comedic my voice, as far as I've developed it, has always been pretty heavy on research and spreading facts that I think are worth spreading.
But this is different. For the first time or at least on the largest scale ever, people (white people) are paying attention to a centuries old problem (the white supremacy of the United States of America). I am going to use this tiny platform to do my tiny part to keep us focused on it for as long and effect as much change as possible.
Big ol' note: this has always stood, but if for any reason, you want to unsubscribe, please do so. Retaining sanity is more important than ever right now, and optimizing media consumption (more things that make us better, fewer things that make us batshit) is a very effective sanity-retention tool.
Sub-big ol' note: If, however, the reason you unsubscribe is that you are a white person who is confused/exhausted by the world being so focused on Black Lives Matter right now and you just want to tune it out, please do still unsubscribe.
But, I would love to have a one-on-one chat to try to help you better understand the issues people are fighting for and how you can help even if you are confused and exhausted. Reach out!
Speaking of educating ourselves...
My good friend Keith Newman had an idea which I am stealing without remorse (because I'm pretty sure he is into this idea spreading):
I'm doing a "match grant" up to $50 for anyone who buys themselves a book about racism. Reply to this e-mail with the receipt and I will match the cost with a donation to Black Lives Matter.
Just like I touched on last week, keeping a routine is a great way to keep yourself active and do your part to keep this movement going.
Reading a book is a great way to keep a routine and it educates you, so it's like a little match grant happening inside you. Cute.
Here is a list of books , though by all means do your own research also. And here is a list of black-owned bookstores you can order from. Some are currently out of stuck due to such an influx of orders this past week (great!). You can do your research on that also or you could get an ebook.
Speaking of eBooks!
I have been reading The End of Policing by, a 2017 book that's been getting a ton of buzz this week because it's about "How the police endanger us and why we need an alternative." Timely!
It may sound untenable to anyone born after 1829 (the year the "original" police force was intituted), but the book makes the case that not only are police departments inherently oppressive, they are actually ineffective.
Further, the author (Alex S. Vitalie, Brooklyn College Professor of Sociology) takes each reform-from-within tactic (diversity, retraining, community policing) and explains why they do not work and have not worked.
If you've been seeing all of the Defund the Police talk and feel confused or skeptical, this is a great place to start. Even just read the first chapter!
All of which you can do for free because the publisher is being a badass.
And you should! Because look what Milkwaukee just did!
I know, I know. Some of you just read that last bit and said, "I want to know more about this in theory, but it feels like one of the things that people are fighting for but it won't happen right now and I want focus on more practical things."
WRONG! Only hours ago, the city of Minneapolis announced a plan to not just defund, but disband their police force.
Go read about it, but more importantly, know that it's not a crazy out there idea that will never happen. It just did.
Which is makin' LA look pretty bad!
Because Mayor Garcetti and the City Council are patting themselves on the back for pledging to cut $150 million from the LAPD.
Sounds like a lot! It is not a lot. $150 million is less than ten percent of the LAPD budget! This is the whole thing! They have too much money! They don't spend it well. Stay tuned on this one, hopefully they'll buckle for more.
Quick tiny off topic thing before we go
I was thinking of using an alternative to "temporarily" in the subheading at the top there and looked up synonyms. While doing so, I learned that "for the nonce" is a synonym of "for the time being." Never heard of it. Love it. Probably gonna start using it. At least for the nonce.
Back on topic for the close
Okay, that's all for now. As always, I wish you all safety and sanity. If you are looking to further educate yourself on police violence and white supremacy and how we can work to dismantle both, hit me up. I am more than happy to share what knowledge I have, and maybe gain more together.
Love,
Julian