Where Do We Go From Here?

I took a break from my scheduled posts, my review of TRUEL1F3 and a few other books are currently sitting in my drafts folder, unsure of when to post them.

On May 25th, I went to work like it was a normal day. But only 8 miles away from me George Floyd was murdered by a police officer.

Since then the world has changed. George Floyd’s death is not the first black life taken by a police officer. Shit it’s not even the first this YEAR. But it’s the one that broke the nation. It’s the one that rallied millions of people, it’s hopefully the last one.

I’ve been here for the protests, the riots, I’ve watched as the city that I call home has been plastered on news channels around the world. I’ve seen the sides of Minnesota that they’re not showing on the news: the communities coming together, of all races and religions, uniting together to fight for justice, and coming together to help clean up and rebuild our home.

I’ve watched businesses be destroyed, I’ve watched people I care about be hit with rubber bullets and tear gassed. And I’ve spent years watching my black friends and neighbors live in fear.

At the end of the day, this is a book blog. It’s my little tiny corner of the internet that barely anybody sees, where I talk about and review books. It’s inconsistent, and I sometimes go months without posting, but it’s mine.

So how do I use my tiny little platform here to talk about books without adding to the injustice of the world? How do I sit here and talk about books with everything else going on?

Next week, I’ll resume my scheduled posts. I’ll start to get up to date on my backlog of reviews that I want to go out. But I’ll also be making changes. I plan on promoting more black authors, more queer authors, more authors and readers that don’t look like me.

I’m not entirely sure how I’m going to do it yet, or if anyone will see my words here in my tiny corner, but I have to try. Books are important, reading and expanding our knowledge as human beings MATTERS. And I’d like to help that along in anyway that can.

So, if you have any ideas, ways to help promote diverse books, highlight diverse books, promote black owned bookstores, let me know.

And meanwhile, I’ll still be here. I’ll still be fighting for justice alongside my friends and family, and although the world won’t change overnight, I believe that as long as we continue to stand together, we can all make a big difference.