"To My Unborn Daughter" Project Cries For Support For All Black Lives

"It’s not just about Black men; not just our fathers, not just our brothers, or our sons." - Black Action Now

Earlier this month Yale's Black Men Union sparked a photo campaign in solidarity with Michael Brown's family.

Via tomyunbornson.tumblr.com

In the photos young men stood with signs stating what they would like to tell their unborn sons. Although this is a wonderful campaign some felt there was a large group of people left out of the conversation.

Black Action Now / Via Facebook: Black-Action-Now

"What people fail to realize is that black women have been in the forefront of every movement but are constantly left out of every movement," said Shavontae Patrick, one of the primary organizers of Black Action Now.

Patrick, along with her fellow organizers, Ashleigh Shackelford and Brittany Maddox, felt the murders of black women, transgenders, and non-gender conforming people had been completely left out of the conversation and believed something had to be done.

"There have been multiple murders of black women and none of them have gotten news coverage or whole movements rallied behind them," Patrick states. "For example Tyisha Miller, 35, Takira WIlson, 26, Yvetter Smith, 47, Aiyana Jones and she was seven I believe. So, while I appreciated Yale's project I felt that it was flawed."

Black Action Now / Via Facebook: Black-Action-Now

"We created this project to respectfully address that every 28 hours, a BLACK PERSON is killed," states their Tumblr post. "And everyday, a BLACK PERSON, is oppressed and marginalized for their existence intertwined with intersecting identity components."

Black Action Now / Via Facebook: Black-Action-Now

"I wanted to be a part of this to bring to light that black women are important," said Danielle Gaines (shown in the photo above). "We built this movement but we never get credit for it. That's a problem."

Black Action Now / Via Facebook: Black-Action-Now

"As a Black woman raised by a Black woman who will raise Black women, I refuse to be forgotten," said Shackelford. "But I also refuse to use my privilege as a Cis-woman and forget Black trans and gender nonconforming individuals out of the conversation. Black transwomen are being murdered at higher rates than anyone else and we're not talking about it. That needs to change."

Black Action Now hopes to continue the project in the future, possibly in a different way but promoting the same message.

"In order for this movement to move forward we must leave the misogyny, sexism, transphobia, homophobia and hate out," Patrick states. "We want to make it clear that we are not man haters or denouncing the importance of the lives of black men. We fight for them everyday and we just want the same in return."

Black Action Now / Via Facebook: Black-Action-Now

To see the original post check out the Black Action Now Tumblr page or their Facebook photo gallery.