Eight minutes and 46 seconds: That’s how long it took an officer of the Minneapolis Police Department to take the life of George Floyd, a cheerful father of two who was a great athlete and loved to dance. What can you do with that amount of time?

As the reset of America is underway, understanding the role you can play in a system of change can be difficult, but we encourage you to listen, learn and be active — as we are also trying to.

While this is not a comprehensive list, we encourage our readers, especially non-Black ones, to use the time you have to take steps toward justice. To start, spend more than eight minutes and 46 seconds a day to be part of this change.

Day 1

Read “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack,” by Peggy McIntosh.
Sit in the discomfort of confronting your own privilege. Consider not only the privilege you have but how it affects your life.

Day 2

Sign the petitions for justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery and others.
Register to vote or confirm you are already registered.
Call your senators and urge them to back the Emmett Till Antilynching Act.

Day 3

Watch Megan Ming Francis’ “Let’s Get to the Root of Racial Injustice” TEDx Talk.

Day 4

Listen to the “Keep the Fight” episode of Pod Save the People.

Day 5

Read “Who Gets to Be Afraid in America?” by Ibram X. Kendi.

Day 6

Dinner and a movie: Order food from a local Black-owned restaurant and watch Ava DuVernay’s 13th on Netflix.

Day 7

Watch Alfre Woodard performing Sojourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech.

Day 8

Day 9

Read “The Bridge Poem,” by Kate Rushin.

Days 10–16

Read The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, by Michelle Alexander, after buying it from a Black-owned bookstore.

Day 17

Give your copy of The New Jim Crow to a friend and spend a day reflecting on what you’ve learned.

Day 18

Explore and read pieces from History Is a Weapon.

Day 19

Day 20

Watch I Am Not Your Negro (available on Amazon and Kanopy).

Day 21

Watch Britney Cooper’s “The Racial Politics of Time” TED Talk.

Day 22

Support Black-owned businesses. Here’s a list of places you can support from afar.
Donate to the Equal Justice Initiative.
Dance to music made by Black artists. Here’s a playlist from OZY:

Days 23–26

Day 27

Buy children’s books featuring diverse characters and donate them to a local school. Here’s one list; you can find many more online.

Day 28

Read “The Case for Reparations,” by Ta-Nehisi Coates.

Day 29

Day 30

Send this list to a friend and challenge them to see whether they can devote a small portion of each day for a month to supporting a more just America.

Compiled with inspiration from Justice in June, by Bryanna Wallace and Autumn Gupta, and Anti-Racism Resources, by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein.

Shaan Merchant

The 30-Day Justice Plan