Hi All,
I think this is a really important discussion and would love to hear what other shops are doing. (sorry I am unable to reply in Spanish)
Bike Farm in Portland is doing a few things:
- We are trying to continue our conversations around equity and racial diversity despite covid and not being able to meet in person. While it's not as robust as it should be, I believe we will continue to prioritize this conversation in the next few weeks
- We are setting up mobile repair (somewhat like a street fair) at BLM protests. We will offer free minor repairs for people attending protests.
- For Juneteenth, we offered a free repair day for BIPOC folks, working with the ride leader for the Black Liberation Ride.
I think generally what we are doing is being open and generous to any BIPOC organization that could benefit from our resources. We are endeavouring to listen to what the community tells us they need and not be prescriptive about how we can help. We are internally trying to educate our members and volunteers. We are listening to the voices of our BIPOC members/volunteers, trying to hear what they need to be safe in our space or safe out on the street.
Our history with being an inclusive space for all races has not been perfect. We are wrestling with how to sit with our failures, acknowledge them, and work towards changes that address the issues. Pre Covid, we were creating a night for spanish speaking folks and setting up movie nights that educate our community about the injustice experienced by black people who lived in our neighborhood well before we got here. I believe there will likely be systemic changes that are needed. When we figure them out, maybe we'll post again regarding what we have found.
Again, I'd love to hear about what other shops are thinking.
-Momoko