The year 2020 has been equal parts catastrophe, chaos, and revolution. The year began with the emergence of a global pandemic, followed by an uncoordinated (and woefully inadequate) response that disproportionately impacted marginalized populations. But even in a pandemic, police brutality persists. The resulting protests were met with more violence. And quite frankly processing this all has been crippling. 

Over the last few months I have been grappling with how I plan on protesting. For some, their activism of choice is marching or attending a rally. With a global pandemic, I didn’t feel comfortable joining large demonstrations. Instead, I learned to carve my own path and contribute to the cause in ways that made the most to sense to me.  If you are unsure how you can help, here are some suggestions:

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Across America, despite the alarming threat of COVID-19, and several months removed from cameras capturing a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on the neck of George Floyd for more than 8 minutes slowly killing him, the eyes of the world turned to Kenosha, Wisconsin for yet another police shooting of an unarmed Black man. Jacob Blake was shot 7 times in his back while leaning in the car where his children were present inside. Protests in the community broke out as the video began to circulate social media and members of the community demanded justice and sought explanation as to why we are again mourning and grappling with yet another unarmed Black man fighting for his life after being shot by police.  

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Lapstone & Hammer is once again partnering with the United Way to benefit kids in our community with the Lapstone & Hammer x United Way "Step Up for Student Access" Fundraiser. We will be giving away 1 pair each of the Union LA x Air Jordan 4 "Off Noir", Salehe Bembury x New Balance 2002R1 "Peace Be The Journey", and Off White x Air Jordan 5 "Sail" to raise funds to purchase the devices required to support distance learning for local students in need. As we have done with past Lapstone Initiatives, we are seeking to harness the hype of three of the hottest releases of the year to create real change in our community. We feel it is our duty to activate much needed resources to students in Philadelphia and its surrounding communities that are in need of assistance.

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“An injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” 

-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

These are trying times today in America. We are going through a global pandemic, the poor are still poor, the rich are getting richer and sadly, racism is still alive and well. It’s never actually gone anywhere. It’s just been more covert. There’s a lot of hurt in the Black community, and what you’re seeing out here is a reflection of that. The pain, the anger. We carry that with us every single day of our lives. Consciously and subconsciously it manifests itself in other parts of our lives and we don’t even realize it. Sometimes I feel like it’s embedded into our DNA. 

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“The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.” 

-Malcolm X 

I cannot recall in what context or even what age I was when I first learned of this Malcom X quote. What I do recall, however, was the searing rage and hollowing sadness that washed over me as I immediately understood every part of this statement to be fact. 

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