A Commitment from Take This
The Take This leadership team and Board of Directors hereby reaffirms its commitment to foreground the voices and labor of Black people through the following measures:
- While Take This staff members represent diverse cross sections of gender, religion, sexual orientation, and neurodiversity, we commit to prioritizing the sourcing and recruitment of Black candidates for new roles in the organization. As research has affirmed, a more diverse team is stronger, more effective, and better able to serve all people.
- Including Black participants on panels at cons and speaking events on all topics
- Continuing to educate ourselves on the impact of racism and systemic inequity on members of the Black community, and to unlearning our own racism on an ongoing basis
Resources
Mental health resources, including resources for other countries, can be found on Take This’ website. For tips about how to talk about mental health in a way that is validating and supportive, please see the Take This FAQ on How to Talk About Mental Health.
We know from 2018 research by Catalyst that people of color practice high levels of vigilance and experience high levels of stress in workplaces related to their race and ethnicity. According to the US HHS Office of Minority Health, adult Black/African Americans are 20 percent more likely to report serious psychological distress than adult Whites. As noted by Mental Health America, “racial and ethnic minorities have less access to mental health services and are more likely to receive poor quality care when treated.” Further, “persons of color are disproportionately represented in both adult and juvenile justice systems. While there are few, if any, differences in the nature and scope of crimes committed by persons of color, their rates of arrest, prosecution, and incarceration, as well as the length of sentences, are substantially higher than the Caucasian population.”
There are a limited number of mental health resources specifically for Black people, including Mental Health America, The Loveland Foundation and Therapy for Black Girls.
Many of us are turning to social media for reports and information about the protests and violence. While this is often a dangerous rabbit hole, right now it’s also the most reliable source of first-person accounts. That said, we need to be cautious about how much social media – and news – we consume during traumatic events. As we noted in this article, “sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Tik Tok are often terrible ways to receive information, facts, or news.” Further, “[t]oo much overtly distressing news which offers no real solutions will only stress you out further. Get factual info from trusted sources.”
This is a time to educate yourself and listen to Black voices. Do NOT ask Black people for help right now – many are exhausted, grieving, or scared. Some excellent resources for learning and taking action include:
- Rachel Cargle’s resources
- Me And White Supremacy Book
- How to help and where to donate (from TheCut)
- This list of actions
- This reading list
- This list of resources complied by a group of clinicians
For those of us in the game community, the IGDA and the IGDA Blacks in Gaming SIG are hosting a panel on Thursday, June 4th, to discuss the current situation, concerns of the Black game development community, and the ways to support progress and combat prejudice.
- Topic: What Can You Do? A First Person Perspective
- Location: https://twitch.tv/igda
- Time: June 4th, 2020 – 11am PDT / 2pm ET / 18:00 GMT
Finally, we encourage you to promote, invest in, hire, and support Black-led studios, Black developers, Black creators, and other Black members of the game community.