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© 2019 ASCAP

Raise Your Voice: Resources to Fight for Change

ASCAP is a diverse family of music creators. We represent many voices, but we are united in our mission to make the world a better place with our music.

Once again we are faced with a challenging moment in our society. Institutional racism and bigotry have led to the deaths of so many innocent Black people, often at the hands of authority figures who are supposed to protect us. So many of us are filled with pain, frustration and anger.

This moment offers an opportunity for all of us to come together and take action to fight for change and create a lasting, much needed transformation in how we treat each other.

We don’t have all the answers, and there is much to learn. But as an organization, we wanted to amplify some of the many voices that need to be heard and stand alongside all those working to fight these systemic injustices.

Here are some resources and thought leaders that we have found impactful. We will update this page as we continue this dialogue, working together as a community to learn, grow and raise our voices to combat racism.

TAKE ACTION.

Sign a petition, reach out to your legislators and learn how to protest safely.

SUPPORT & ENGAGE.

Connect with and learn more about these organizations doing vital work combating racism and championing social justice.

  • American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)’s mission is to realize this promise of the United States Constitution for all and expand the reach of its guarantees.

  • Black Lives Matter is a global organization in the US, UK, and Canada, whose mission is to eradicate White supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes. 

  • Black Visions Collective (BLVC) believes in a future where all Black people have autonomy, safety is community-led, and we are in right relationship within our ecosystems.

  • Campaign Zero analyzes policing practices across the country, conducts research to identify effective solutions to end police violence, offers technical assistance to organizers leading police accountability campaigns and develops model legislation and advocacy to end police violence nationwide.

  • Center for Policing Equity simultaneously aids police departments to realize their own equity goals as well as advance the scientific understanding of issues of equity within organizations and policing.

  • Color of Change designs campaigns powerful enough to end practices that unfairly hold Black people back, and champion solutions that move us all forward.

  • Donate to funds assisting the families of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor or George Floyd; or to the Minnesota Freedom Fund (*Donations temporarily paused) or Nationwide Bail Fund, which assist protesters.  

  • Equal Justice Initiative is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.

  • Know Your Rights Camp’s mission is to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders.

  • My Brother’s Keeper - President Obama launched My Brother’s Keeper in February 2014 to address persistent opportunity gaps facing boys and young men of color and to ensure all youth can reach their full potential. In 2015 the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance (MBK Alliance) was launched, to scale and sustain this mission. Within the Obama Foundation, MBK Alliance focuses on building safe and supportive communities for boys and young men of color where they feel valued and have clear pathways to opportunity.

  • NAACP Legal Defense Fund is America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans. LDF also defends the gains and protections won over the past 75 years of civil rights struggle and works to improve the quality and diversity of judicial and executive appointments.

  • National Association for the Advancement of Colored People  (NAACP)'s mission is to secure the political, educational, social and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons.

  • National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) is a civil rights organization dedicated to the empowerment of Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and same gender loving (LGBTQ/SGL) people, including people living with HIV/AIDS. NBJC’s mission is to end racism, homophobia, and LGBTQ/SGL bias and stigma. As America’s leading national Black LGBTQ/SGL civil rights organization focused on federal public policy, NBJC has accepted the charge to lead Black families in strengthening the bonds and bridging the gaps between the movements for racial justice and LGBTQ/SGL equality.

  • National Urban League is a historic civil rights and urban advocacy organization with 90 affiliates serving 300 communities, providing direct services that impact and improve the lives of more than two million people nationwide.

  • Southern Poverty Law Center is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of our society. Using litigation, education, and other forms of advocacy, the SPLC works toward the day when the ideals of equal justice and equal opportunity will be a reality.

  • The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the civil and human rights of all persons in the United States. Through advocacy and outreach to targeted constituencies, The Leadership Conference works toward the goal of a more open and just society – an America as good as its ideals.

  • Witness helps people use video and technology to protect and defend human rights.

LEARN.

Educate yourself and others about the roots of racism in America and how to be an antiracist.

MUSIC & SOCIAL JUSTICE.

Find out what our allies in the music industry are doing to help, and listen to some of the Black music that has soundtracked social change over the past century.

*ASCAP is not responsible for the content or reliability of any linked website, and does not necessarily endorse all views expressed therein.