Black Lives Matter - Perspective

#BlackLivesMatter #Perspective #BeAntiRacist
#ClaireSaccardi #CareForYourCommunity

#JusticeForBreonnaTaylor

#BlackLives Matter #Perspective 

#BeAntiRacist #CareForYourCommunity

Thought For The Day

#BlackLives Matter #Perspective 

#BeAntiRacist #CareForYourCommunity

Our History - The Greenwood Massacre

Ninety-nine years ago the first bombs ever dropped on American soil were dropped on the Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Ok. At the time it was the wealthiest black community in the country, also known as “Black Wall Street”.

Greenwood - the most preeminent Black community in the United States at the time and 35 square blocks - was home to 10,000 residents and contained scores of Black-owned businesses, hotels, restaurants, law offices, doctors offices, movie theaters, and more. Following a false, racially infused accusation made by a white woman about a black man in a downtown elevator, many of the nearly 3,200 Klan members in Tulsa and countless more white vigilantes armed themselves with firearms and marched North to Greenwood.

They opened fire in the streets, set businesses and homes ablaze and dropped napalm-style bombs from fertilizer planes flying overhead. 

With the “help” of the national guard and the local police force, they arrested nearly 6,000 black residents and forced them into temporary internment camps in the Brady Theater (now a popular Tulsa music venue) while their thriving community was systematically leveled. Many of those imprisoned were starved, beaten, and killed in the same space the city hosts jubilant concerts in today.

In just a few short days, Greenwood was completely destroyed and nearly every single one of its 10,000 residents were left homeless. While the official death toll from the Americans Red Cross at the time caps the loss of life at 300, some researchers estimate that the true number could rival that of Pearl Harbor and the September 11th attacks.

The Tulsa Race “Massacre” (NOT riot) was one of the greatest terror attacks in the history of this country, and yet it is so frequently missing from the pages of our history books. When it is mentioned, it is given the false label of “riot” - implying that, somehow, the Black community of Greenwood was complicit in the attack. They were not.

This is what whitewashed history does - it allows us to choose not to face the true horrors of our past, thereby absolving us of responsibility to rectifying it.

Regardless of where you live - it’s incumbent upon us (especially white people - who benefit from the same system that allowed this attack to occur, protected its perpetrators from legal action, precluded it’s victims from receiving compensation, and swept it from the view of the masses for generations) to seek out the stories that have been purposefully hidden or misrepresented in order to continue perpetuating false, placated narratives of our country’s past.

Once we know - we need to act. Share your knowledge of our past with others. Learn about implicit biases and check your own consistently.

Look at current events through a lens of systemic racism and call it out. Support Black-owned businesses and businesses run by other communities of color - use your money as a tool to help the right centuries of wrongdoings.

Support organizations like the Greenwood Cultural Center who fight to preserve this history and restore the community of Greenwood.

The story of Greenwood is not an isolated one. We have so much work to do as a country to undo a history of violence and oppression against communities of color — and it all starts with knowing.

#BlackLivesMatter #BeAntiRacist #CareForYourCommunity

Emergency Medicine Matters - After Concussion, Return to Normality

 Image Credit: Child Brain Injury Trust UK

The After Concussion, Return to Normality (ACoRN) leaflet is a great new resource which details expected signs of concussion and provides a comprehensive step by step guide of how to manage these signs. 

The resource was designed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board. However, it can be downloaded and edited to allow healthcare teams across the United Kingdom, and further afield, to put their own logo and department details on the resource, as they wish.

Credit goes to Mark Lilley, Paediatric Major Trauma Coordinator for all their efforts in developing this resource. This will be a valuable resource for many families.

You can download this resource here.

Image Credit: Child Brain Injury Trust UK

#LifeIsPrecious #FamilyMatters #HomeHealth

Living With Anxiety In A Time Of Plague

Illustrator: Kate Allen

Anxiety has a way of sending your brain into complete overdrive. I know, it happens all too frequently with me!

The mental health condition, which affects an estimated 40 million adults in the USA alone, is notorious for causing excessive rumination and intense worry. It’s common for those living with the issue to think about a mistake and believe they’re worthless or a failure, for example. Believe me, you are none of those things!

Sometimes, a feeling of panic comes up for no reason at all. Possibly accentuated during times of stress and perceived isolation. And this is all in addition to the physical symptoms, like stomach pains and headaches. So no fun at all!

If you’re living with anxiety, it’s important to know that there are ways to manage it. If your anxiety becomes debilitating, it’s important to seek help from loved ones that understand, skilled friends who know how to listen or, even better, mental health professionals. 

Reading uplifting cartoons and memes are a great momentary antidote, but nothing substitutes for good care and support.

Feeling better is totally possible. I care. You care. We care. Together we will defeat this shit!

Illustrator: Kate Allen

#Anxiety #LifeIsPrecious #MentalHealthMatters #YouAreStrong

Thought For The Day

Image Credit: Joanna Watala

A powerful, emotionally provocative photograph of two beautiful women with similar body image issues; they simply handled their emotional baggage differently.

If our eyes saw souls instead of bodies, what would we actually define as being beautiful? Would there be as many people craving the unachievable ‘perfect’ look?

Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, there is no such thing as perfect.

More of Joanna Watala's images can be found on Instagram.

#BlackAndWhite #Beauty #LifeIsPrecious