Hey y’all. So much community news and action to share this week, so let’s get right to it.

Let’s Do This,
Ben, Editor-in-chief

The Fight for Racial Justice Starts At Home

How the DoSomething community is disrupting racism, starting with the people we care about most.

As young people power the protests for racial justice, change is happening nationwide, in all areas of our lives. A few examples:

School districts are introducing anti-racism curriculum.
Cities are reforming or even dismantling police forces.
Statues of slave-owners and murderers are being torn down.
Black-owned businesses are getting more love, land, and funding.
The entertainment industry is reckoning with racism.
Even Disney rides are being rethemed due to racial backlash. (Honestly, no better time to rewatch The Princess and the Frog).

And while DoSomething members help power this fight in our streets, our schools, and our laws, our community is also disrupting racism in the most personal space: our relationships.

Starting brave conversations about racial justice with the people who love and trust you most is a powerful and immediate way to foster empathy, share perspectives, and ultimately build our movement for a more just and equitable world.

Our guides for Black members, non-Black members of color, and white members have been viewed over 40,000 times, powering the DoSomething community to start anti-racist conversations in their homes, and sign pledges to tackle racism in their communities.

DoSomething Member Taylynn, Disrupting Racism

“Now that communities of all colors, ages, races, and ethnicities are standing together, the Black Lives Matter protests are becoming bigger because everyone is realizing that now is the time for us to stand for unity, liberty and justice for all,” says DoSomething member Taylynn, 15.

DoSomething Member Iris, Disrupting Racism

“As a POC [person of color], I strongly believe that it's time that our people rise together and fight for our rights,” says DoSomething member Iris, 18. “We can't keep living with fear and hate. It's a toxic relationship that we are coming to the end of. We need to keep fighting so that our voices are not shut out.”

“I've lived in a white-washed suburb for 17 years, and it finally feels like people are starting to listen to our cry. I will not stay silent. I am so passionate about people and fighting for true equity,” says Mia, a 17-year-old DoSomething member. “In the fall, I will be majoring in Social Justice and Cultural Studies. I am dedicated to continuing to fight for the lives and rights of others. This is only our beginning.”

Use our conversation guides to disrupt racism near you. Let’s Do This.

Get Started

DoSomething members contributing to their communities by making masks for themselves and others!

With COVID-19 surging in many states -- and with the virus disproportionately affecting Black and Latinx Americans -- mask-wearing (along with physical distancing, hand washing, and other precautions) are crucial to stopping the spread of the virus. That’s why DoSomething members (from left to right) like Alexis, Andy, and Celia have contributed to the nearly 10,000 masks our community has made. (Celia even sewed and distributed 60 herself!)

Use this guide to make a mask for yourself and your family, no sewing required.

Make a Mask

DoSomething Club Leader Zayn… interviewed our Head of Campaigns, Genisha, for his podcast on social change.

Happy birthday (on July 6!)... to friend of DoSomething Mari Copeny, aka Little Miss Flint.

It’s BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) Mental Health Month… so check out this guide from Shine.

#TheTimeIsNow for Washington to change its football team’s mascot… and our friends at IllumiNative are powering the change.

More than three years after the Standing Rock protests… a judge ordered the Dakota Access Pipeline to be shut down.

If you’re a high schooler, you can learn how to solve the world's most important problems with technologies like AI, genetic engineering, nanotechnology… with The Knowledge Society.

My hero today is… 19-year-old Alexis Williams, a computer science major who made a website to connect people with resources to fight police brutality, anti-Black racism, and white supremacy.

This week in Black joy… these twins’ lemonade stand is thriving after a woman questioned whether they had a permit (they do now!).

This week in Dogs of DoSomething… Olivia’s dog Charlie is chilling in the shower, Anna’s dog Mia has a cute hairstyle, and Elyssa’s dog Yoda takes a snooze.