8 Ways to Make an Impact During Black History Month!

February is here and it is officially Black History Month! February is one of my favorite months of the year because the imagery, history, and accomplishments of US are amped up! I think for years I was bitter about America not weaving our history into American history. Our only stories being that of slavery and a few heroes like Rosa Park and Martin Luther King Jr. Completely discounting all the authors, historians, beauticians, scientists, and activists that came before and after them. However, I have come to an understanding that as always we have to celebrate our own accomplishments and allow the world to catch up. So, today I look forward to an entire month where we do just that. If you are unsure how you can make an impact or need some ideas, you are in the right place.

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Support Black Businesses- While this may seem obvious it needs to be said. We have to get in the habit of supporting our own and when we enjoy products or services making sure to recommend those businesses to our friends and family. You will be surprised that if you take some time to research you can find black businesses across almost all services that we use. If you need ideas I list 25 different black businesses to buy from here. This is an easy way to pour back into the black community.

Donate to Black Charities-There are thousands of black charities and non profits that are doing amazing work in our communities. The best way to find a non profit or charity is to do your research by deciding if there is a particular cause you would like to support. For instance do you want to see more black girls in engineering or coding, make sure to search for those specific terms. Are you wanting to donate to black college funds? Would you like to support reducing gun violence? Are you looking to support local charities that support your community? Hopefully this helps spark some ideas for you.

Use Smile.amazon.com to donate to Black non profits when you shop on Amazon-I don’t think it’s widely known that you are able to donate 0.5% of your purchase to a charity. The cool thing about this is there is no extra cost to you. You shop like you normally would and and it will tell you if the item qualifies for a donation. There are over one million charities to choose from and there are thousand of black nonprofits listed. Keep in mind that Amazon does not default to this site. If you are on your desktop you can create a bookmark to smile.amazon.com. Most of us order from the Amazon shopping app, you can go to settings and turn the Amazon Smile option on so that it will default to that page when you use the app. From there it will automatically donate on any order that qualifies. You can find out how to set it up and read more on the program here.

Stream Black Movies -With so many of us still in quarantine, streaming movies and shows has become second nature. You can support black creatives by streaming their art. Netflix has a section of movies called Strong Black Lead that allows you to browse through and select movies with black actors and actresses as the main characters. Prime video also has something similar with their Amplify Black Voices category which has movies and shows that are included in your prime membership and ones that you can purchase. These would make perfect date night in options!

Read and purchase books by Black authors-My favorite self care activity is reading. Over the years I have read books by tons of black authors and when I tell you our people are beautiful story tellers, I mean every word of it. If you are into fiction adult stories you can find some options in this post where I share 10 black authors you should read. I also recently shared 5 self help books written by black authors for those of you that may be looking to improve your personal development. These books have very diverse points of view. Amazon also has a whole section dedicated to black authors called Celebrate Black Voices, feel free to browse through all the genres and it includes audible books as well for those of you that prefer to listen to books. I’m an avid reader so this is my favorite suggestion.

Educate yourself on Black History-Unfortunately our accomplishments are not widely shared, so you must do your due diligence to educate yourself. You can utilize some of the mediums listed above like watching films that revisit our history. Reading books that do the same. Google as well will direct you to different resources as well. Always make sure to verify the sources when searching on the internet. Attend events or museums in your city that highlight black culture. I found Because of them we can on Instagram. They celebrate black accomplishments throughout the year. They have an amazing subscription box for kids to educate them on black history. It’s a perfect way to introduce or build upon knowledge on black history.

Stream Black musicians-You already know the music business is finicky. Pay attention when black artists have new music out and stream it. Artists need millions of streams in order to build revenue. Since we are still in the middle of a pandemic most touring has stopped which also means they have lost that stream of income. Make a point to listen to your favorite artist everyday this month. Share on social media your favorite songs. If they have a live planned to share music, make sure to support. Just by enjoying the music you love you are supporting these musicians as well.

Support Black digital creators-Who are they? Bloggers, YouTubers, Influencers etc. We are people creating content often via a social media app that leads to our own platforms. The best way to support them is to watch their videos, read their blog posts, like their posts, comment and engage when the content has served you in some way, share it with friends, and save it to refer to it later. The cool thing about support is it is free, it only costs a little bit of your time. When you support digital creatives it creates more opportunities for them to partner with brands and allows our voices and faces to be amplified.

Happy Black History Month!! Here’s to supporting our own!