With this year's largest social movement in history and with the entire world paying attention to the fight for equality, it’s clear that inaction and silence are no longer options for brands, creators and influencers. In June, influencers Tanice Elizabeth and Lucy Alston, joined forces to create #CONTENTFORBETTER, an online space to help support and enable a collective voice of content creators and artists to help drive a better balance of equality across the industry and on social media.
We caught up with both Tanice and Lucy to talk all things #CONTENTFORBETTER, including their 3 step pledge and the importance of continuing the conversation online and offline...
Discover more about #CONTENTFORBETTER here
Lucy Alston // Tanice Elizabeth
Tell us a little bit about your platform #CONTENTFORBETTER & how it was created?
#CONTENTFORBETTER is a space to support inclusion on Instagram. It came about from our joint frustration during the time in June this year, in not seeing Black and POC equally represented as their white peers. We spoke about this in depth and really wanted to help in some way, using Instagram and content creation as our voice. It should not be left to our Black and POC peers. Only as a collective voice, both black and white, can we truly tackle this.
You have your #CONTENTFORBETTER 3 step pledge, please can you tell us a little bit about each step & why each are so important to the movement?
We started with a simple pledge that people can join in with and follow to actively support the BLM movement on social by doing three things. Firstly, being aware and researching a brand’s ethics before entering into a relationship with or promoting them. Secondly, challenge diversity of events and campaigns that we are asked to take part in and lastly, continuing to stay active in promoting diversity amongst our peers.
What are the best ways to keep the conversation going, both online & offline?
Be constantly aware of the daily micro aggressions, whether that be in the media, a TV program you are watching or the magazines you are reading. Awareness is key. Help your family and friends to recognise these. Be open and have empathy. Look to the next generation, these will be the ones that can make the most difference.
Read and share your learnings. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or share your findings. Speak openly, but mindfully about your thoughts.
How important do you think social media & influencers are in continuing to drive this movement?
We’re loving your ‘Share for Better’ series to support #amplifymelanatedvoices, can you tell us a little more about what this is & it’s importance…
What’s next for #CONTENTFORBETTER? Any exciting plans for the future?
#CONTENTFORBETTER is still currently evolving, but currently we see it as a community, a space that helps promote diversity amongst creatives and artists alike.