Black Lives Matter has been a main topic in the news for almost a year now. Many people support this cause and donate to organizations that can help. However, not everyone has the money to support every organization.
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How are you supposed to help BLM if you don't have any money? How are you supposed to help BLM if you're a broke college student like me?
Post. Repost. Reblog. Retweet. Save. Share.
Post news and information on what's going on with the Black Lives Matter movement. Get the posts supporting black lives out there for everyone to see. Even if you have only a few followers, post post post.
Posts are not only informational, but they also simply get the message out there. These posts are becoming a new news outlet for Black Lives Matter.
I become aware of everything that's going on from the posts that my friends and family make online. This is an extremely helpful way to support Black Lives Matter without having to spend lots of money.
You may be thinking that posting does nothing to help the BLM cause, but this is not true. Posting information is so important. This gets messages out there to people who may not be aware of the situation at hand. Even if you only have a few followers, getting the message out there is a big help to the Black Lives Matter movement.
To find posts to share you can go to the Black Lives Matter Instagram page.
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Another way to support BLM is to donate. Yes, that sounds quite contradictory to the title of this article, but hear me out. I reached out to an activist friend of mine and asked how I could help without spending a lot of money. Every small donation counts.
Only donate to organizations where you know and trust the people running them
This may seem a bit hard; what if you don't know anyone who's running a BLM activist organization? I didn't know anyone who ran an organization so I reached out to someone I did know, someone who I knew would have lots of information for me. Because I trust this person, I found a great organization that I donate to.
Ongoing donations to support the community
The second way is a lot more simple than the first step. Once you find an organization that you want to donate to, don't simply do a one-time donation, but try to do a monthly one.
Anything will help; even just $2-3 a month. Think about it; you pay about $10 a month to watch movies and TV shows on Netflix, surely you could pay $3 a month to an organization that's trying to help better the world.
I didn't like this idea of donating every month at first, but then I thought about all the subscriptions I have that I pay for monthly. They're all for entertainment, why can't one of them be for the good of the community? I only donate $5 a month, but to me, it feels like I am actually helping the cause.
There are a number of causes that you can donate to. There are victim funds, bail funds, local community organizations, policy reform organizations, and many more. Pick one that speaks to you, one that you feel you want to support.
I personally have chosen to donate to Black Lives Matter Global Network.
Again, I know this idea contradicts the title, but donations are the most important ways to help support Black Lives Matter. Unless you're the leader of an organization or you work for an organization, donating and posting is about all you can do.
Going to peaceful protests is also an option, but I again recommend only going to the peaceful ones. I've only ever been to one peaceful protest. I did nothing, but sit there and yet I felt like I did something. I felt like I helped somehow.
The part about monthly donations versus one-time contributions really resonated with me. Consistent support matters more than large occasional donations.
The suggestion about reaching out to activist friends for trusted organizations is smart. I was overwhelmed by all the options until someone helped guide me.
You know what's interesting? I've been donating $5 monthly by just skipping one fancy coffee each month. It barely affects my budget but adds up over time.
I actually disagree with the notion that small donations matter. Organizations need substantial funding to create real change. We should focus on pressuring larger institutions instead.
The suggestion about $2-3 monthly donations is brilliant. I just looked at my coffee spending and realized I could easily redirect some of that money to support the cause.
Social media sharing might seem small but it's actually crucial. Last week I learned about a local community meeting through a friend's post that I wouldn't have known about otherwise.
I really appreciate this practical guide. As a student living on ramen noodles, I've been feeling guilty about not being able to donate more. It's good to know that even small monthly contributions can make a difference.
