How to Challenge the Status Quo: Educate, Support, Act

While Curious Fox focuses on love, sex, and relationships, our mission is to change the noise that limits our possibilities and challenge the status quo which has been designed to replace our humanity with conformity. As an organization that is dedicated to curiosity, dignity, community, and change, we stand alongside all those who fight to be seen and safe. We imagine and actively work to create a world where we all have the freedom and safety to live and love as we are. 

We have been exploring ways to continue to engage in making our voices heard and dismantling the systems that have been specifically designed to hold Black people and other groups down. Here are some of the resources we are leaning on to further educate ourselves, support others, and act towards social justice and human dignity in this moment. 

Educate Yourself 

The media is flooded with documentaries, movies, interviews, and shows you can watch to gain a better grasp of the events and topics that surround us. 13th (Netflix), American Son (Netflix), Dear White People (Netflix), If Beale St. Could Talk (Hulu), King in the Wilderness (HBO), See You Yesterday (Netflix), The Hate You Give (Cinemax), and When They See Us (Netflix) are a few impactful projects that have brought very real events into our homes creating a foundation for important conversations. 

We are in the age of information and are able to explore stories of curiosity in the face of adversity right from our phones. From Opinion Editor pieces, personal accounts on blogs, and essays, reading is no longer confined to books and newspapers. Y’all Better Quiet Down speech by Sylvia Rivera (1973), The Subtle Linguistics of Polite White Supremacy by Yawo Brown, White Fragility and the Rules of Engagement by Robin DiAngelo, and The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon are powerful reads!  

Podcasts such as 1619 (New York Times), About Race, Citations Needed, Code Switch (NPR), and Intersectionality Matters! hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw, Sex Ed In Color by Cameron Glover offers accounts of the struggles where you can listen while you are carrying on with daily routines. 

Information is right at our fingertips, we can use it to make a difference.

Support Others 

Protestors, families of victims, and organizations leading the fight need all of the support they can get to create change within communities. If it’s available to you, we challenge you to donate once a week to any of the organizations/funds under the donate section in the Ally Resource Guide. 

The Curious Fox platform is built on diversity and representation. One of our goals is to provide a platform for a broad spectrum of educators and experts to inform our communities on the topics that are often considered taboo. Due to the pandemic courses, workshops, and more have shifted onto online platforms granting us access to their work right from our homes. 

Dirty Lola, SxNoir, LT, Reba The Diva, Kinky Black Educator, Afrosexology, Dirty South Sex Ed, Melissa Carnagey, Goody Howard, Brittany Broaddus-Smith, Shadeen Francis, Dr. Donna Oriowo, Venus Cuffs, Ashleigh Chubby Bunny, Shanae Clark, Ev’Yan Whitney, Dr. Nadine Thornhill, Chanta Blue, Haylin Belay, Ericka Hart, Tracie Q. Gilbert, Cindy Lee Alves, Jimanekia Eborn, Bianca Laureano, Tanya Bass, Chanel Jaali, Shani Hart, Marla Renee Stewart, Tia Marie Mosely, Sexologybae, Robin Wilson-Beattie, Dr. Zelaika Hepworth Clarke, Stephanie Franklin, Dr. Lexx Brown-James, and more use their platforms to educate and promote pleasure among black, queer, and curious communities (Thank you to Carmeron Glover for this list.). Attend their online events, follow, share, and support if you can to keep our system of resources going and growing! We will be featuring black educators, experts, advocates, activists, creators, and more daily on our Instagram feed and stories to guide you to these underrepresented voices.

Act Now

There are so many ways to take action and call for change on these injustices. 

Contact your local congress members with a simple text message, sign petitions calling for justice and reform, vote in all elections if you are a U.S. citizen (sign up for mail-in ballots if you are unable to visit poll sites during the pandemic), and join demonstrations within your communities if you feel so inclined. There is power in numbers, let’s join as a community to make a difference.

The Ally Resources Guide offers more options for reading, where to donate, and how to take action so we can continue to change the noise.

To hear more curious and courageous stories, subscribe to Curious Fox for free. Each week you will find more stories and lessons, as well as ways that you can explore your curiosity.