Fundraiser for Anti-Racism

Alderwood Studio and Mx Domestic stand firmly with the Black Community. Saying that Black Lives Matter as much as every other life should not be hard for anyone to say. And the time is NOW to end the systemic oppression by design of the black community and the senseless murders of black humans by those whose job it is to protest ALL of us. #blacklivesmatter

From Monday June 8th, 2020 @ 8am PT to Friday June 12, 2020 @ 5pm PT, we will be hosting an online fundraiser of mostly handmade goods on the Fundraiser Instagram Page. All proceeds will benefit the charities listed below. Please donate generously.

• The Okra Project: The Okra Project is a collective that seeks to address the global crisis faced by Black Trans people by bringing home cooked, healthy, and culturally specific meals and resources to Black Trans People wherever we can reach them.
• The Movement for Black Lives: The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) seeks to reach millions, mobilize hundreds of thousands, and organize tens of thousands, so that Black political power is a force able to influence national and local agendas in the direction of our shared Vision for Black Lives.
• National Bail Out: National Bail Out is a Black-led and Black-centered collective of abolitionist organizers, lawyers and activists building a community-based movement to support our folks and end systems of pretrial detention and ultimately mass incarceration. 
• Justice for Breonna Taylor (scroll down on site for donation): On the night of March 13th, the Louisville Metro Police executed a warrant, looking for drugs they never found, reportedly trafficked by a person who did not live with Breonna or in her complex-and whom they already had in custody. They sprayed her home with 20 rounds, shooting Breonna 8 times, killing her in her bed.
• I Run With Maud: This fundraiser was designed to assist Ahmaud’s mother; Ms. Wanda Cooper-Jones and her immediate family with financial support during this extreme difficult time and in their struggle for justice for the murder of Ahmaud Marquez Arbery. 
• In Memory of Tony Mcdade: On May 27th, 2020, Tony McDade, a black LGBTQ person, was shot and killed by a Tallahassee Police Department (TPD) officer. Many details surrounding this incident are unclear, but we are asking the community for support during this difficult time. 100% of funds collected here will go to Tony’s family.
• NAACP: The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is to secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons.
• Black Lives Matter: #BlackLivesMatter was founded in 2013 in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s murderer. Black Lives Matter Foundation, Inc is a global organization in the US, 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. By combating and countering acts of violence, creating space for Black imagination and innovation, and centering Black joy, we are winning immediate improvements in our lives.
• National Urban League: The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization dedicated to economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of living in historically underserved urban communities.
• Portland African American Leadership Forum: The PAALF envisions a world where people of African descent, enjoy the rights, resources and recognition to be a thriving, resilient and connected community. PAALF uses the lens of The Black Queer Feminist (BQF) is a political theory and practice developed out of Black feminist and LGBTQ movements for liberation. Together, this praxis (thought + action) is like putting on a pair of glasses in order to understand the conditions of Black people and what we must transform in order to liberate all oppressed people.
• Equal Justice Initiative: The Equal Justice Initiative is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.

Thank you the many makers who have donated for this fundraiser. My general philosophy when it comes to helping is that if you can, you should and it’s clear many other humans agree. Please share this blog post on your social media to help spread the word.

PRESS RELEASE

Attached find a press release. Please help spread the word to media outlets, bloggers, celebrities, anyone who would help get the word out.

In addition to the fundraiser, please follow Black Makers Matter on Instagram at @blkmakersmatter. They are a coalition of black makers united to bring about and implement cultural transformation in the sewing and crafting industry.