Tailwind is in deep mourning of George Floyd, David McAtee, Ahmaud Arbrey, Breonna Taylor, and the long list of other lives taken unjustly and violently.

Our hearts are truly aching for the black community and the injustices they continuously face. As a company, we want to ensure we can be a support for peace, justice, and equity.

As an Oklahoma-based company dedicated to supporting small businesses, we have a dark chapter in our state’s history that hits especially close to home at this time.

The Tulsa Massacre that happened 99 years ago saw the thriving black community of Greenwood, including over 300 black-owned businesses, violently demolished. To this day, the city of Tulsa is still digging in search of mass graves.

We want to honor their legacy by continuing to help small businesses of all backgrounds succeed today.

But frankly, our team is mostly white. Our hearts may be aching, but we know we cannot come close to truly understanding the deep-rooted pain our black coworkers and members feel.

We are working to more deeply understand our white privilege without putting the burden of education on our coworkers of color.

Simultaneously, we are working to ensure we do not speak over those voices and actively listen to suggestions on where we can improve.

Members of our team have cultivated a list of resources below that we have found helpful.

Our Commitments

Inclusion is one of our core values, but we recognize that we can do better. 

Here is where we’re starting and will gladly welcome further suggestions:

We are committing to amplifying black voices. You can follow along with us this week on Instagram as we begin.

We are committing to providing space and mentorship for children of color in the tech industry.

We are committing to hiring more people of color and ensuring we have a supportive environment for them.

We are committing to educating ourselves on anti-racist practices and have created an #anti-racism Slack channel to collect resources, hold workshops, and have honest discussions. We’re also seeking out experts we can engage to help us.

We are committed to building a product that helps our members take a stand. As a response to being muted for the week in order to amplify black voices and resources, we added a pause button to our Instagram dashboard for participating members.

We are committed to doing this while maintaining a team culture that enables us to process these issues honestly and openly, respecting and appreciating our individual differences.

Resources

Below is a list of resources submitted by our Tailwind team members. The list covers actions, education resources, media, businesses and social media accounts to follow!

Actions

• Donate to organizations that align with your personal values
• Vote in local, state, and federal elections. Many states have primaries for Congress this June
• Educate yourself and others
• Work to understand your privileges and use them to help

Podcasts

Good Ancestor

An interview series with change-makers & culture-shapers exploring what it means to be a good ancestor. Hosted by globally respected speaker, anti-racism educator, and New York Times bestselling author of Me and White Supremacy, Layla F. Saad.

Data & Society

Presenting timely conversations about the purpose and power of technology that bridge our interdisciplinary research with broader public conversations about the societal implications of data and automation.

Black Wall Street 1921

A podcast chronicling history and events before, during and after the Tulsa Race Massacre.

The 1619 Project

The 1619 Project is an ongoing initiative from The New York Times Magazine that began in August 2019, the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative.

Code Switch

What’s CODE SWITCH? It’s the fearless conversations about race that you’ve been waiting for! Hosted by journalists of color, our podcast tackles the subject of race head-on. We explore how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and everything in between. This podcast makes ALL OF US part of the conversation — because we’re all part of the story.

The Diversity Gap

When it comes to diversity, good intentions are only the beginning. Join Bethaney Wilkinson as she explores the gap between good intentions and good impact as it relates to diversity, inclusion and equity. On The Diversity Gap podcast, we’ll be learning from thought leaders, authors, creatives and more about the diversity gaps in society and culture. Our goal is to discover promising practices for closing diversity gaps in our everyday lives and work!

Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast

Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast features movement voices, stories, and strategies for racial justice. Co-hosts Chevon and Hiba give their unique takes on race and pop culture, and uplift narratives of hope, struggle, and joy, as we continue to build the momentum needed to advance racial justice in our policies, institutions, and culture.

Pod for the Cause

Presented by The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights. From the courts to immigration, we’re seeing unprecedented attacks on the values we hold near and dear. At Pod for the Cause, we’re going to tackle these issues and more. Our friends in the movement will be stopping by to have these conversations, and they promise to be real, straightforward, and honest.

Pod Save the People

On Pod Save the People, organizer and activist DeRay Mckesson explores news, culture, social justice, and politics with fellow activists Brittany Packnett Cunningham and Sam Sinyangwe, and writer Dr. Clint Smith. They offer a unique take on the news, with a special focus on overlooked stories and topics that often impact people of color. 

Scene of Radio: Seeing White

An examination of whiteness, what it means, what’s it for, as well as racial inequity.

Books

• How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
• Me And White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
• White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
• Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
• The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby
• The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
• Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell
• A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn
• Lies My Teacher Told Me; James Loewen (US History in general)
• The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein (US suburbanization <– super good for OKC peeps as we are a car city! )
• killing rage: ending racism by bell hooks
• Books for kids: Books are Magic
• Additional Books List

And while you’re at it, support black-owned bookstores and decolonize your bookshelf with these tips!

Movies + Documentaries

On Netflix:

13th (2016)

This film, named after the 13th amendment, explores the history of racist legislation imposed post-Civil War and the disproportionate disenfranchisement of black people in the U.S. prison system. 

The House I Live In (2012)

This film dissects the War on Drugs in America and its racial implications. 

Whose Streets? (2017)

This documentary covers the killing of Michael Brown, the Ferguson Uprising, and the resulting movement. 

American Son (2019)

An estranged biracial couple anxiously awaits news of their missing son after an incident with law enforcement. 

Dear White People (2017 – )

This 3-season comedic drama series chronicles the experiences of a group of students of color at a predominantly white university.

See You Yesterday (2019)

A teenage science prodigy uses her time travel creations in an attempt to save her brother who has been killed by a police officer. 

When They See Us (2019)

This miniseries details the real-life story of the Central Park Five: five black teenagers who were wrongly convicted of the assault of a Central Park jogger in 1989.

Time: The Kalief Browder Story (2017)

This miniseries tells the true story of a young black man who spent three years in jail despite never being convicted of a crime. 

On Hulu

If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)

The plans a young black couple in the 1970s has for their future together are derailed when the husband is accused of a crime he did not commit. 

The Hate U Give (2018)

A black teenager caught between two worlds- her mostly white private school and her predominately black neighborhood- must face harsh realities after she witnesses the murder of her close friend by a police officer. 

Available to Rent

The Black Power Mixtape (2011)

This documentary recounts the Black Power movement of the 1960s and 1970s as told by Swedish journalists. 

Clemency (2019)

A Death Row prison warden must face the psychological burdens her job places on her when she is presented with executing another inmate. 

Fruitvale Station (2013)

A young black man is swept up in an altercation with police while traveling home on the subway after New Year’s Eve festivities.

I Am Not Your Negro (2017)

This documentary was based on a book idea that James Baldwin proposed but was never able to complete. It discusses the lives and assassinations of Malcolm X; Martin Luther King, Jr.; and Medgar Evers. 

Just Mercy (2019)

A young Harvard graduate moves to Alabama to defend those wrongly accused of crimes or without proper representation. 

Selma (2014)

This historical drama chronicles the fight for suffrage led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960’s. 

The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution (2015)

This documentary examines the rise and legacy of The Black Panther Party.

Black Businesses

• The Black Wallet – database for black businesses, events, and education for black entrepreneurship 
• She Designs – The Women of Color UX Design Course
• Black Makers and Store Owners– A collection of black business entrepreneurs and artisans
• We Buy Black – a global marketplace for black-owned businesses
• Some black small biz brands/products to support:
  • Alexandra Winbush
  • Body Butter Lady
  • Amina Adem
  • Alter Planning Co
  • The Lip Bar
  • Nubian Skin
  • BLK MKT Vintage
• Some Black Entrepreneurs to support:
  • A crowd-sourced collection of Black Entrepreneurs (Instagram) 
  • Ashley Basnight, Smashing DIY
  • ZOU XOU Shoes
  • Tree Fairfax
  • Oma the Label
  • Lolly Lolly Ceramics
  • Beads Byaree
  • Hudson & Young Grooming Co.
• Support Black-owned businesses that have been destroyed

Shareables

Share

• #amplifymelanatedvoices challenge
• 10 Steps to non-optical allyship
• Black-led lgbtq+ orgs
• https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/

Resources for parents: Your Kids Aren’t Too Young to Talk About Race: A Resource Round-Up

Instagram Accounts to Learn From

• Morgan Harper Nichols 
• Rachel Elizabeth Cargle
• Alishia McCullough (she/her)
• Layla F. Saad
• Check Your Privilege
• Rachel Ricketts
• The Great Unlearn
• Ibram X. Kendi
• Blair Amadeus Amani
• Whembley Sewell
• Brittany Packnett Cunningham
• Adwoa Aboah
• Anela Malik

This list is by no means comprehensive, but we’re happy to expand it! See something you think should be included? Let us know in the comments below!

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