6 ways to protest against racial injustice

As the leader of the American civil rights movement, Martin Luther King Jr. organized a number of peaceful protests throughout the 1950s and 60s to end racial discrimination and segregation in the United States. In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which falls on January 18 this year, here are six ways to protest against the ongoing racial injustice in this country.

1. Educate yourself using the abundance of books, articles, podcasts, and movies available on racism and racial justice, and learn how you can affect change.

2. Volunteer for a local organization that seeks to address issues in your community that disproportionately affect African Americans such as food insecurity and under-funded schools.

3. Sign petitions demanding racial justice, write to your local officials to advocate for policy changes, and start conversations about race with the people in your life.

4. Attend a demonstration calling for an end to police brutality and systemic racism. You can also join an aid group that provides supplies and assistance to protestors.

5. Donate money to bail funds and organizations led by people of color that are pushing for change. If you’re an artist, you can sell your work and donate the proceeds.

6. Support black-owned businesses to help shrink the racial wealth gap and foster job creation for people of color.

For more information about how you can fight against racial injustice in your community, reach out to local organizations.

Every man of humane convictions must decide on the protest that best suits his convictions, but we must all protest. — Martin Luther King Jr., 1967