How Your Organization Can Support Black History Month in a Way That Honors the Holiday

By Jazmyn Brown

In 2022, many organizations are deciding what to post on social media on federal holidays (like MLK Day). But before deciding what you should post, think about if you should post. Do you have something meaningful to add to the conversation or can this be a moment of uplifting others instead?

 

What Black History Month celebrates

Black History Month celebrates Black American’s contributions and achievements to society and raises awareness of their history and their struggle for racial justice. It’s celebrated throughout February, in honor of Frederick Douglass and President Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays.

Black History Month is generally a time of celebration for Black people, where they can be proud of their heritage. That’s why it’s so important to think about the message you’re sharing with the world during this time so you’re not making it all about your organization.

 

Your role in the conversation (if any)

Before drafting a social post with a black graphic that says, “Happy Black History Month”, reflect for a moment. Instead of asking “What can we post?” ask “How can my organization’s platform, influence, and resources be leveraged to build a more equitable society for everyone?”

You may have a good intention of crafting a Black History Month social media campaign, but does that match what your organization is doing internally? Are you re-examining your hiring practices to eliminate unconscious bias? Do you have a diversity, equity, and inclusion committee or employee resource group? Are you allocating time and resources for your DE&I strategy?

Take a moment to also examine your company’s mission and values. Do these align with uplifting and celebrating Black people? Does your organization serve a predominantly Black community or groups of people? If so, there may be an opportunity for you to create a post that feels genuine.

Remember, being a true ally isn’t about your intention — it’s about intention meeting impact.

 

How to contribute

There are many ways to contribute to the conversation, but here are three ways I recommend: passing the mic, advocating for change, and putting your money where your mouth is.

 

Pass the mic

If the last two years have taught us anything, it’s that brands need to know when it’s time to speak up and when it’s time to use your platform to let others tell their stories.

Sharing your platform with others can have a powerful impact and one way to do this is by inviting a leader from a local organization that uplifts Black communities take over your Instagram story and ask them to share details about their organization. You can host a Lunch and Learn with a local influential Black leader where they can tell everyone about the work they are doing in the community. Partnering with a local group to share the unknown but true Black history on your social media posts is another option.

There are many ways to “pass the mic” and it’s up to you to decide which makes the most sense for your organization.

 

Advocate for change

Black History Month is an opportunity to highlight issues within your industry and teach both individuals and organizations ways to be supportive of the Black community. For example, if you’re a nonprofit organization that helps senior citizens no longer able to stay in their own homes find accessible housing, you can share how there are racial disparities in nursing homes. If you’re a financial services company that prides itself on offering low-rate home loans, you can share more details about the history of redlining and how it’s still impacting Black families today. If you’re a healthcare organization, you can share how harmful implicit bias can be for Black women seeking healthcare.

If diversity, equity, and inclusion are truly important to your leadership team, there should be no pushback on wanting to advocate for equitable change in your industry.

 

Put your money where your mouth is

If your organization doesn’t have a substantial platform to pass the mic and you don’t have the means to advocate for change, you can always donate to local or national organizations supporting the Black community. Find an organization, share details about the organization and your donation on your social media pages, and then challenge others to donate (think about tagging local competitors too!). Remember, this isn’t to show off that you donated, it’s to share the amazing work the organization is doing.

Through well-thought-out, carefully crafted social media posts during Black History Month, your good intentions can have a great impact. Make it count.

 

The post How Your Organization Can Support Black History Month in a Way That Honors the Holiday appeared first on KidGlov.



source https://kidglov.com/how-your-organization-can-support-black-history-month-in-a-way-that-honors-the-holiday/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

3 Ways to Humanize Your Direct Mail

The key word in direct mail is “direct”. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of direct mail is papers containing advertisements that are mailed directly to people’s homes. According to the US Postal Service, 98% of people check their mail daily and Americans spend upwards of 30 minutes with their mail on a single occasion. Many people, like me, love direct mail is because we can touch it, it comes to our homes, and it cuts through the digital noise that many of us experience while at work. Some even say that being able to touch and feel direct mail incites more human emotions than digital platforms do. It’s simple really. Anything you can do to make your direct mail feel like it was sent by a human vs. a robot, the better. Here are three ways you can give your fundraising appeals a friendly, human touch. 1) Humanize Your Direct Mail Through Personalization Using variable data printing is a great way to address donors and potential donors by name instead of the form letter...
Read more

KidGlov’s Katie Ripa Inducted into AMA Lincoln’s Hall of Fame

For anyone who knows KidGlov Vice President Katie Ripa , it’s no surprise that she was honored as the American Marketing Association (AMA) Lincoln’s latest Hall of Fame member. We’re not saying this to brag (okay, we’re bragging about her a little ), but simply put, Katie’s dedication to giving back is the stuff of legends. From her experiences as chair of Lincoln’s Young Professionals Group Leadership Council to traveling across Brazil with Lincoln Rotary Club 14, Katie exemplifies KidGlov’s value of courageously believing we can change the world. The KidGlov team was honored to celebrate her latest achievement at the 2023 Prism Awards in May. “Katie embodies what the AMA Hall of Fame is all about,” said Lyn Wineman , KidGlov’s chief strategist. “She’s an accomplished marketer who gives of herself to others, the marketing community, and the community at large. She was also the president of Lincoln AMA the first time the organization received the prestigious National Chapter Excelle...
Read more

Lincoln LOVs KidGlov

We love Lincoln! It’s why we set up shop here more than 11 years ago and why we were pleased as punch to be named one of its Best Places to Work in June. Lincoln’s Best Places to Work is sponsored by Woods Aikens LLP along with the Lincoln Human Resource Management Association and the Lincoln Journal Star . The awards recognize Lincoln businesses and organizations that have a proven track record of supporting and engaging with their employees. For the third time since 2017 we were honored in the small business category. “Culture has always been our key focus at KidGlov,” said Katherine Warren , our chief operating officer and head of culture. “Our manifesto focuses on giving our team the time and space they need to do the work they LOV for clients they LOV with a team they LOV.” Now in its fifth year, Best Places to Work administers an employee engagement survey to measure corporate culture to help pinpoint top workplaces. The survey, from Quantum Workplace, measures a wide range...
Read more