How to communicate about current events

Remember #BlackOutTuesday?

It was June 2020, and a LOT of non-Black people (mostly white people and companies led by white people) were posting black squares on Instagram to “show solidarity” with the Movement for Black Lives.

Do you know what #BlackOutTuesday was supposed to be?

The hashtag and day were conceived of by Black movement organizers to share information about protests and resources with and for other Black people. So these black squares dominating Instagram feeds were quite harmful, hiding the posts that #BlackOutTuesday was conceived for and making it challenging or impossible to access that information. (Here’s a great article with a more detailed explainer.)

To be blunt: 

White people were following a trend because they wanted to be perceived as allies to Black people, but instead their posts and statements harmed Black people.

This is a textbook example of performative activism: 

A marginalized group is directly harmed by something. (Black people were (and still are) harmed by anti-Black racism and police violence.) Folks outside that marginalized group want to help, but they prioritize taking action that makes it look like they’re “good people” over doing what the marginalized group is actually asking for. (Non-Black people posted black squares on Instagram instead of not posting on Instagram for a day and not using the #BlackOutTuesday hashtag so that Black creators’ posts could be seen). As a result, the group being directly harmed is further harmed. (Black people’s calls to action were silenced.)

So how can we make statements in support of marginalized groups we’re not part of while avoiding performative activism and allyship? 

Here’s a guide to take you through the process:

1. First, stop and ask yourself what you’re hoping happens as a result of your post/statement.

Our first answer to this question is usually, “I want things to get better.” Which is great. But I encourage you to dig a little deeper and see what else is there.

Here’s my ugly truth: When I dig deeper, sometimes the honest answer is, “I want to be perceived as a good person.” When I have my CEO hat on, sometimes my answer is, “I want my clients to trust my leadership.” And when I work with clients through these moments, sometimes their honest answers are, “I want to do the right thing.” Or, “I want my staff who are part of this targeted group to feel safe and included working here.”

All of those answers, and ones similar to them, are strong hints that it’s time to pause. For things to get better, for folks to feel safer working with us, for people to trust our leadership, we have to do our homework and take action. Otherwise, our words tend to be empty, performative, and even, like on #BlackOutTuesday, harmful.

Statements, in and of themselves, are not what make a person an ally, a leader trustworthy, or a workplace inclusive. Rather, it’s the actions we take and the impact they have on the issue that ultimately matter.

2. If your honest answer sounds similar to the examples above, ask yourself this follow-up question: “What actions can I take to make an impact around this issue that are aligned with what people from the directly targeted group are asking for?”

Not sure where to start? Usually, organizers from a targeted group* make asks of folks wanting to act as allies when tragedy hits. (There are also many established organizations that work long-term on anti-oppression issues that have already established asks that can apply in these situations.) If you're not sure what these asks are, that's an important indicator that it's time to diversify your news sources and the organizations you follow. Our free How to Audit Your Influences workbook can guide you through how to do that strategically.

Find out what these organizers are asking of you, and then do it.

For individuals, these actions usually look like:

• Donating money somewhere

• Making a phone call to an elected official (or five) asking them to take legislative action

• Volunteering our time somewhere

• Adding our signatures to a petition, etc.

For organizations, these actions often look like:

• Reinforcing or re-writing an internal policy to make it more equitable or inclusive

• Giving people meaningful time off (that means adjusting deadlines and moving meetings) to process a traumatic event.

• Reaching out to an ERG or DEI Council to ask staff what supports they need (but not asking them to do the unpaid labor of helping you craft your response to the event).

• Donating to groups run by and for people from the impacted group(s)

• Ending a contract with a company we’ve learned is causing harm and shifting that contract to a more ethically-run company, etc.

*Note: "Organizers from a targeted group" usually does not mean your acquaintance or friend who belongs to that group. They're probably managing their own feelings about this right now, and it's not their job to manage yours, too. So don't ask them to! Instead, find the people and organizations who have subject matter expertise in this area and leverage the resources they point you toward (which you can then compensate them for).

3. Time to write!

Now your statement has written itself: You've got something to share that will help further the aims and meet the needs of those directly impacted by the event, because you've just taken action that does that. Sharing about the actions you’ve taken and encouraging or even helping other people to take those actions themselves will amplify your impact. 

So the motivation behind our desire to post or make a statement shifts: Whereas before you wanted to "do the right thing," now you've done something that was being asked of you and you're helping organize others to take aligned action alongside you. You've moved from a focus on perception to a focus on action.

Now, if I ask you what you're hoping happens as a result of you making this statement, you might say, “I want the targeted group to get what they’re asking for, so I'm sharing resources that will help others take action with me.”

The posts and statements that come out of this intention are usually not performative and instead quite effective.

Two critical notes:

1. Know when your original ideas aren't needed: 

Sometimes (probably more often than we think), like on #BlackOut Tuesday, the most aligned action for folks who aren’t part of the targeted group to take is to amplify the voices of others – not to share our own original ideas. This usually means either staying quiet (so that our voices aren’t taking space most effectively used by people from the targeted group) and/or re-posting statements and calls to action from the directly targeted group. 

2. Pay attention to whose expertise you're relying on:

It never hurts to triple check that all the action we’re taking, the resources we’re pointing others towards, and the information we’re relying on are sourced directly from organizers in the communities directly impacted by a given issue or event. Remember, it takes time and energy to educate people and guide us toward action! It's important to not ask for or expect folks who belong to these groups to do the work for us just by virtue of their identity, and to compensate the organizations and experts whose work we do benefit from.

We’re always happy to partner with your Marketing or Communications teams to help them with these statements – it’s often a core piece of our strategy work with clients.