No thoughts went towards skateboarding this past week, and right now, getting eyes on ten impressive skateboard clips seems stupid.
QS content has often been framed as distraction: a list of links for your Monday back at work, an interview with a pro to get your mind off the essay you’re writing for school, a video compilation of highlights from the skate internet to help a morning hangover from a Thursday night out.
But that assumption is short-sighted and privileged. The tragic murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police and the ensuing days have magnified that QS and all skate platforms — magazines, websites, companies — could and should been doing so much more to help fight, educate and mobilize against racial injustice in America.
There is no more “Yeah, but…”
There is a latent rhetoric in skateboarding that by somehow inviting confrontation with law enforcement via this thing we choose to do, that we all — even us white, non-P.O.C. skateboarders — “get it.” That is absolute bullshit. A skateboard is a hobby, not a race or an equalizer. We can never relate to the horrors black people face at even a routine traffic stop by police, when the thought of their lives ending right there is a palpable, immediate threat that has been enacted over and over in our country’s history. We can only listen to them without interruption, educate ourselves and stand with them in the fight for justice.
Who knows or cares what went on in skate videos since the last Top 10. Over the past several days, you may have encountered an exhaustive Google document created by @patiasfantasyworld (yes, the meme account sometimes roasting skaters’ dating habits), “Master List of Resources on How To Dismantle Systemic Racism.” It includes everything from recommended reading, to a nationwide list of bail funds, a page of white-to-white conversation topics, organizations to support — it’s a lot, and worth a lot of your time.
This week’s countdown is curated by @patiasfantasyworld in an effort to provide an intro to the doc’s reading list. Obviously the order is arbitrary and for presentation’s sake ;)
Links to Included Books & Corresponding Clips:
10) Race Matters by Cornel West [Good Reads page / video] 9) Revolutionary Suicide by Huey P. Newton, J. Herman Blake [Good Reads page / video] 8) Cut `n’ Mix: Culture, Identity and Caribbean Music by Dick Hebdige [Good Reads page / video] 7) Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur [Good Reads page / video] 6) Stokely Speaks: From Black Power to Pan-Africanism by Stokely Carmichael [Good Reads page] / video] 5) The Coldest Winter Ever: A Novel by Sister Souljah [Good Reads page / video] 4) Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde [Good Reads page / video] 3) Killing Rage: Ending Racism by bell hooks [Good Reads page / video] 2) Free Jazz / Black Power by Philippe Carles & Jean-Louis Comolli [Good Reads page / video] 1) Freedom Is a Constant Struggle by Angela Y. Davis [Good Reads page / video]
QS is a media company, and your loyal readership is what helps sell ads to keep it going. The entirety of our May 2020 ad revenue + recent week of webstore sales has been donated across Campaign Zero, Black Visions Collective, and Reclaim the Block.
There are an overwhelming amount of charities that need your help right now, and “Master List of Resources on How To Dismantle Systemic Racism” has a page for them.
However, this does not stop at a couple donations. We will be having an ongoing conversation with our network in skateboarding about how to remain proactive in this fight, and will keep you informed on how you can help every step of the way.
Be safe, and see you in the streets ♥