Day Two: Southern Poverty Law Center

For 45 years, the SPLC has been a powerful legal and educational voice for civil rights. Their specific program focuses include children's rights, immigrant justice, LGBT rights, economic justice, criminal justice reform, and monitoring hate and extremist groups. SPLC has tracked the instances of reported hate crimes, not just over the past few days, but since their inception. What's changed is the rate at which they've occurred. From Wednesday to Friday, they logged more than 200 incidents. Usually, 200 to 250 hate crimes are reported in six months. These occurred in two days. Two. Days.

If you're interested, follow them on Facebook and/or donate here.

This is part of a series on organizations that will fight tooth and nail to protect the rights of all. If you are looking for resources on allyship other than organizations you can support, check out this list.

Day One: Allyship

Since the election, a lot of people have been posting about wearing safety pins as an outward indication that you're an ally. For some, it's the first step they've ever taken towards allyship, which is cool. But a symbol without action, is no longer enough. It may have been co-opted as a symbol of solidarity per this Facebook post. If you wear one, make a plan about how you will react when (not if, when) you see injustice. Isobel Debrujah has a lot of information on how to get started.

If you want to be an ally, please don't ask your People of Color, LGBTQ+, people with disabilities, people of faith, people of no faith, and Othered communities. And for the love of everything holy, don't tone police them, especially not in this time of grief.

One tough thing to keep in mind: Being an ally isn't about you. It's not about shouting your views from the rooftops, it's about your actions. And yes, I recognize my privilege and the irony in posting on my personal blog about how to be an ally. There's not much more I can say on that end, so on to the resources:

• If you see something happening, this video has a great plan of action for how to reaction.
• Everyday Feminism has a tag on how to be an ally or a better ally. This page is updated regularly. They also published an article on How To Be A Proactive Ally.
• Christopher Keelty does some good work on Medium about easy ways to become an ally to non-White groups. Spoiler alert: speak the hell up.
• For a hard read on how not to treat Women of Color, check out Shannon Barber's "Dear White Ladies."
• Need some ways to start working on racial justice? Showing Up For Racial Justice has resources for you.
• Scared for your Muslim friends? Follow CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations. They'll be featured separately soon.
• Check out the Trans* Ally Workbook to challenge what you know about gender.
• For a heaping dose of body positivity, check out Beautiful Bodies of Birmingham.
• If you feel alone, join the Facebook group White Nonsense Roundup. This group was founded "by white people to address our inherently racist society and stand up against racism in our own families, work spaces, and communities. We believe it is our responsibility to call out white friends, relatives, contacts, speakers, and authors who are contributing to structural racism and harming our friends of color."
• Call your representatives' offices. Let them know that the civil rights of every human in their district are a priority in how you'll vote. When election day comes around, get to your polling place and cast your ballot.

Edited at 19:30 CST on 11/13/16 to include a link on making a plan for how to be an ally. Thanks to Anna Lisa Ciaccio for the link! Edit: 11/13/16 21:43 CST to include calling representatives. Edit: 11/14/16 20:21 CST to include 5 Ways To Combat Racism video. 23:37 CST first graf edited for tone.

New focus for Blog Like Crazy

And now, for something completely different.  Y'all have probably noticed that I haven't posted since Tuesday. The election results and subsequent wave of hate crimes, hate speech, and general bullshit have left me with a lot of deep grief. Here's the thing. As a cisgender straight white woman, I experience a goodly amount of privilege. Much has been written from this viewpoint that expresses what and how I feel. It's not my place to do that again.

Instead, I'm going to resume Blog Like Crazy for a different purpose: To highlight organizations working to preserve the rights of People of Color, LGBTQ+, women, people with disabilities, and all Othered communities. To be a signal boost for writers of color. To provide resources on how to be an ally. Because it's up to us, White people, to LEARN how to be allies. It's not on these communities to teach us.

If you don't think there's a problem, unfollow me. If you believe that the reaction to this election is the same as the other side's to 2008, these posts are not for you. I'm not here to argue, I'm here to provide resources. Love trumps hate. In fact, it's the only thing that ever has.