Introduction to the BLM Issue

Hi all,

With what's been going on in the media lately, we have made the executive decision at Purple Ink to give this issue a theme, and dedicate all the articles to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Although usually our articles are very diverse and flexible, we felt it was important not only to shed light on this brilliant movement and the struggles of black people worldwide, but also celebrate those lives and educate ourselves and you, our readers, in the process.

It can be so easy to share a post, but what's truly important in these times is to criticise the situations that too often pass over our heads in our daily lives, be that what other governments are doing worldwide or even what we're taught in school. We have worked really hard as always to make sure these articles are all very different whilst still paying homage to the movement and our writers' personal passions in the best way possible, and so we hope that you find these articles enjoyable, enlightening and moving.

As one of our columnists, Iola King-Alleyne puts it in her compelling article of why she ignored government advice to stay at home to attend a BLM protest, 'Even reading this edition of Purple Ink is showing support for the cause'. 

Please feel free to share these articles with friends and family. We know this has been a strange couple of months not being in school, but these high-quality and highly researched articles convey a strong sense of community and shared purpose at St Michaels: we are all hungry for change. 

Our columnists have worked exceptionally hard on this issue and we are so proud of them and the product they have created together. Continue to educate yourself; let these articles be a springboard into further education and enlightenment. Hopefully in September, if we are all back at school, we can transfer this passion and inherent desire for change into assemblies, tutorials and school council meetings to see some long overdue change in our school.

Here is a link to the Google document that some of you may have seen entitled 'Justice in June'. It is a document compiled by Autumn Gupta with Bryanna Wallace’s oversight for the purpose of providing a starting place for individuals trying to become better allies. It includes books, TED Talks, podcasts, articles, documentaries, films, petitions, charities and more to help educate ourselves and in turn fight for justice. It includes daily things to do, whether it's listening to a podcast or reading a chapter of a book, with you being able to choose how long you want to spend daily educating yourself (it ranges from 10 minutes to 45 minutes daily).  We believe this is a valuable resource, and we hope that on top of reading the articles in this issue, you will find it beneficial for learning about the cause and supporting it more fully:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1H-Vxs6jEUByXylMS2BjGH1kQ7mEuZnHpPSs1Bpaqmw0/edit?fbclid=IwAR0gk9gKkq5Np7cYWbnr1G6SCDQOsXoo521tYDX8JtDdtlMAxyfMIfmwgPg#

This will be our final issue before the summer, so we hope you enjoy it and have a wonderful summer, despite the restrictions. May we all come back in September better informed and ready to fight for justice!

Stay safe, and thank you as always for reading.

-Fran and Sienna-

Editors-In-Chief