Sharing Guide
The Racial Justice Coalition (RJC) launched the Reparations Are Due Pledge as a way to spark awareness of and support for the local Reparations process here in Asheville and Buncombe County. Once you’ve signed the Pledge yourself, here are some things you can do to invite others to do the same.
Please remember that the Reparations Are Due Pledge is an important initial step in the larger campaign for Reparations in Asheville and Buncombe County, but that additional steps will be necessary to ultimately secure real Reparations and justice. As the situation evolves and the campaign progresses, we’ll be updating you with additional ways you can advocate and encouraging you to follow up with the folks you have engaged to support the movement.
Individuals
- Send an email / Share on social media
- The simplest way to support the campaign is just by spreading the word.
- You may use these sample emails and social media posts as templates you can personalize and send (you may also write your own).
- Please be sure to include a link to the Reparations Are Due webpage that includes the Pledge so that the recipients may join you in supporting these efforts.
- Encourage people to share the email and social media posts with their own networks to amplify awareness.
- Have conversations about the Pledge
- Bring it up with friends and family, and invite them to read about and consider signing the Pledge.
- A Conversation Guide from the RJC is coming soon.
- Invite organizations you are connected with to support the Pledge
- Reach out to the leadership of organizations that you belong to and ask them to consider supporting the Pledge.
- See below for steps organizations can take.
Organizations
- Send an email / Share on social media (both internally and externally)
- Let the people connected to your organization know about the Pledge and invite them to support it.
- You may use these sample emails and social media posts as templates you can personalize and send (you may also write your own). Consider offering your own take on the purpose and significance of Reparations in your organization’s own mission and values, providing historical context and emphasizing the local initiative.
- Make sure you include a link to the Reparations Are Due webpage that includes the Pledge.
- Encourage people to share the email and social media posts with their own networks to amplify awareness.
- Plan an informational event at your organization
- Host an event dedicated to the Reparations Are Due Campaign and Pledge, and our local reparations process, to foster education, dialogue, and collective action within your organization.
- To plan, reach out to david at the Racial Justice Coalition (david@rjcavl.org) to set up a conversation on how the RJC can collaborate with you to organize and carry out your event.
- Depending on scheduling considerations, representatives from the RJC can also co-lead the event with you.
- Here are some ideas for the structure for your event (which could be in-person, virtual, or hybrid):
- Have a presentation, followed by a structured discussion session, allowing participants to ask questions, share insights, and explore potential ways to take action.
- Host a film screening or other media presentation as a way of kicking off the conversation.
- Incorporate the Reparations Are Due Campaign and Pledge into your organization’s ongoing work
- Make a conceptual link between local Reparations and your organization’s purpose/mission/values/community relationships. This will help you communicate to those involved with your organization how the Pledge, and local Reparations in general, are important to your organization.
- Add a statement of your support for Reparations (with a link to the Pledge) to your website and other public relations materials (e.g. newsletters, updates, social media).
- Promote education and understanding within the organization by providing resources and learning opportunities related to Reparations.
- Share recommended readings, articles, or podcasts that explore the history and rationale behind reparations among your staff and community.
- Host workshops or lunch-and-learn sessions facilitated by local organizers or members of your own team.
- Create a dedicated section on the company intranet or learning management system, offering curated resources and multimedia content.
- Reach out to david (david@rjcavl.org) to set up a conversation on how the RJC can collaborate with you in developing a plan for incorporating support for Reparations into your organization’s culture and programs.
RAD Campaign Individual Sample Email and SM post
Subject: Check out the RJC’s Reparations Are Due Pledge
Dear __,
Last month, the Racial Justice Coalition unveiled a new campaign called Reparations Are Due. The goal is simple: to show that there is broad multiracial support for Reparations in Asheville and Buncombe County. How do we do that? By signing and encouraging others to sign the Reparations Are Due Pledge, which you can check out here. I signed the Pledge, and I’d like to invite you to consider doing the same. You can read more about the Pledge, the Reparations Are Due campaign, and the case for local Reparations here.
Some background: In 2020, both the City of Asheville and Buncombe County apologized to Black community members for hundreds of years of harm they had caused or allowed. Our local Community Reparations Commission (CRC) has taken up the challenge of defining how the City and County should make amends for these harms. Recognizing just how hard that task was going to be, the RJC went all-in on Every Black Voice, their campaign to ensure that the Commission gets meaningful input from local Black community members to help guide their essential work. Every Black Voice remains a top priority, and the RJC has now launched a second campaign – The Reparations Are Due Campaign – to demonstrate the depth and breadth of community support for the Reparations process.
The Community Reparations Commission (CRC) will soon be sending the City Council and County Commission a collection of recommendations. The City and County have affirmed their intention to follow the CRC’s leadership. However, if the CRC’s recommendations are appropriately bold in scope, they’re likely to encounter some resistance. Now is the time to let the CRC and our local government leaders know that this community supports deep and meaningful Reparations. I invite you to check out the Pledge today, and to share it with others so that the RJC can meet its goal of 5,000 signatures by July 1. Together, we can and will continue to build this movement for collective liberation.
In Solidarity,
<your name>
Sample Social Media Post
Image:
Caption: I signed the Reparations Are Due Pledge, and I’d like to invite you to consider doing the same. You can read more about the Pledge, the Reparations Are Due campaign, and the case for local Reparations here.
RAD Campaign Organizational Sample Email and SM post
Subject: Check out the RJC’s Reparations Are Due Pledge
Dear __,
Last month, the Racial Justice Coalition unveiled a new campaign called Reparations Are Due. The goal is simple: to show that there is broad multiracial support for Reparations in Asheville and Buncombe County. How do we do that? By signing and encouraging others to sign the Reparations Are Due Pledge, which you can check out here. I’m proud to announce that <your org> has embraced the Pledge, and I’d like to invite you to consider doing the same. You can read more about the Pledge, the Reparations Are Due campaign, and the case for local Reparations here.
Some background: In 2020, both the City of Asheville and Buncombe County apologized to Black community members for hundreds of years of harm they had caused or allowed. Our local Community Reparations Commission (CRC) has taken up the challenge of defining how the City and County should make amends for these harms. Recognizing just how hard that task was going to be, the RJC went all-in on Every Black Voice, their campaign to ensure that the Commission gets meaningful input from local Black community members to help guide their essential work. Every Black Voice remains a top priority, and the RJC has now launched a second campaign – The Reparations Are Due Campaign – to demonstrate the depth and breadth of community support for the Reparations process.
The Community Reparations Commission (CRC) will soon be sending the City Council and County Commission a collection of recommendations. The City and County have affirmed their intention to follow the CRC’s leadership. However, if the CRC’s recommendations are appropriately bold in scope, they’re likely to encounter some resistance. Now is the time to let the CRC and our local government leaders know that this community supports deep and meaningful Reparations. We invite you to check out the Pledge today and to share it with others so that the RJC can meet its goal of 5,000 signatures by July 1. Together, we can and will continue to build this movement for collective liberation.
In Solidarity,
<your name>
Sample Social Media Post
Image:
Caption: I’m proud to announce that <your org> has embraced the Reparations Are Due Pledge, and I’d like to invite you to consider doing the same. You can read more about the Pledge, the Reparations Are Due campaign, and the case for local Reparations here