The Hyphen: Making Change Requires More Than Just Hashtags

Hi friends—

How are you doing this week?

Sending a lot of love to anyone who is feeling it — to those who have been directly affected or personally emotionally triggered by what they are seeing related to Black Lives Matter. To everyone else: if you are feeling discomfort, tension, overwhelm, rage, sadness: it means you’re paying attention. We must lean into it, feel the feelings, and act on them. As Ahmed Ali tweeted: “It's a privilege to learn about racism instead of experiencing it your whole life.” It’s okay to get it wrong sometimes — it’s not okay to say or do nothing.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by general life I wanted to share this handy little YouTube video that helps calm your body and mind down. (It was originally shared by one of my favourite writers/podcasters Jenna Wortham — definitely check out her podcast Still Processing). Remember you can stay very much engaged and focused and involved without burning yourself out with obsessive Internet use.

I felt weird about the black square — it felt shallow and performative when you think about the actual work that needs to be done. I guess it just reminded me of all those times we would all post our ‘thoughts and prayers’ online when global atrocities happened before moving on and going back to the bubble of daily life. Black square or no black square, this is about making sure we all step in, pull up, and take action persistently — not just for a week. Black Lives Matter is not just a hashtag. Anti-racism work isn’t just joining in with whatever is popular on Instagram on a particular day. It’s about doing the work, consistently, longterm.

I couldn’t help but feel a jolt of momentary happiness when scrolling through the Amazon bestseller book charts this week. Reni-Eddo Lodge at number 1 with Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race, closely followed by Layla Saad, Candice Brathwaite, Candice-Carty-Williams, Akala, Bernadine Evaristo. All fabulous books, and scraping the surface of what’s out there to read by BIPOC authors. If you aren’t able to invest in many books right now, why not team up with a group of mates, each buy a book of choice and then swap at the end of the month?

I really hope these books aren’t spiking in sales just for this week — I hope they continue to sell and that publishers / editors / agents continue to publish & commission books by writers from all different backgrounds. And commission more BIPOC writers to write about things other than race. (I found this thread interesting).

Companies, brands, industries: we are watching.

Hope you enjoy today’s newsletter. (If there’s anything you’d like me to share in next week’s newsletter, please email me at hello@emmagannon.co.uk.)

Love,
Emma xo

This week’s Ctrl Alt Delete episode:

Things I've consumed this week...

• Some ways you can help.

• 125 Black-owned businesses to support right now.

• How to talk to your parents about Black Lives Matter.

• Brands jumping on the bandwagon of social consciousness.

• L’Oreal Paris and performative allyship.

• Fighting racism requires more than hashtags.

• This video: Obama addresses George Floyd's death.

• This video: Duchess Meghan delivered a powerful graduation speech on why Black Lives Matter.

• On behalf of your Black colleagues: we’re not okay.

• Eight books by Black authors that aren’t about Black pain.

• Rethinking the “pics or it didn’t happen” approach to activism.

• Nigella Lawson the magic of audiobooks.

• Important and powerful radio from Clara Amfo.

• The movement to defund the police is gaining significant support.

• How you can support Black people today, tomorrow & forever.

OLIVE IS OUT NEXT MONTH BTW!

In Case You Missed It:

— I wrote a piece for ELLE UK in their brand new issue on why I’m not sure about having kids — out now in print.

— Have you joined The Hyphen Book Club? I picked this month's book club pick, it's Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny. Join in, grab a copy, and follow the Instagram page here!