Our Initiatives
Anti Racism Yard Signs
The goal of the Free Signs Initiative is to:
- help local folx publicly align with antiracism
- build a supportive backdrop around St. Pete and visibility at rallies and protests
- continue to remind everyone, every day that lasting systemic change still has not occurred, even though news and social media have moved on. You probably have to pass at least one sign leaving your house every day and that's one more reminder not to slip back into complacency
Signs are designed and printed by two Black Owned Businesses: Speed Pro St. Petersburg and Signs of Justice. Multiple signs have also been designed by and for Florida Indigenous Rights and Environmental Equality.
We rely entirely on monetary donations to fund this initiative. We offer sign pickup from our Pop-Ups, as well as local deliveries.
We have distributed nearly 1000 signs to locals around the St. Pete Area with the help of numerous activists.
Anti Racism Lending Library
The goal of the Free Lending Library Initiative is to:
- offer book rentals to educate locals on white silence, white privilege, and white savior complex in order to understand, transform, and ultimately end white supremacy
- offer resources and handouts on antiracism info and local organizations
- aid locals in moving from performative activism to actively learning, unlearning, self-reflection, and building an antiracism toolkit to interrupt racism and dismantle white supremacy in daily life, internally and externally
Genres of our over 50 titles include:
- non white-washed history (local and national through slavery, Jim Crow, Civil Rights, and more recent)
- biographies on and books by iconic Black leaders
- memoirs about growing up and living life as a Person of Color and the struggle it brings
- Q&A's on hard antiracism questions with honest answers
- how-tos with actionable steps toward becoming an activist
- historical and current affairs on policing and injustices
- mindfulness in racial justice work
- resources for educators
- a small youth section on race and racism
We also offer books written by BIPOC authors not just on oppression and trauma, but also novels and novellas, poems and prose, humor, and books written by local Black authors
Library books have been generously donated by local folx, organizations, and bookstores. We have also used donated funds to purchase books from Cultured Books, a local Black woman owned kids bookstore.
If you’d rather not bring a book home, you can stop by Green Bench Brewing, a local Black owned brewery, to read a small selection of our books in house while enjoying some great drinks.
Anti Racism Social Media Accounts
The goal of the Instagram Initiative is to:
- highlight BIPOC Joy. It’s very easy for white people to only see BIPOC pain spread on social media, so highlighting joy, achievements, and even just mundane normalcy to melaninate your feed
- promote local Black owned businesses, including those we purchase signs and books from
- connect with our followers in new ways (like book giveaways and the Seek St. Pete challenge) to continue education and local engagement
- direct people to local organizations (especially BIPOC-led), activists, and events that are doing the hard ground work to build equity and enact policy change here in the Tampa Bay Area
- promote educators and national organizations that offer webinars, resources, and work towards systemic change on a broader level
- inventory of all the signs and books we offer
We rely exclusively on donations to fund the giveaway and Seek St. Pete challenges, which include offering winners books from our Library or gift cards to local Black and Indigenous businesses.
