Black Lives Matter
We could’ve built ScoreSide anywhere, but we chose Minneapolis because it’s home. We love this city. It’s been a heavy, emotional and painful few weeks for Minneapolis, and many other communities. The murder of George Floyd was a tragic demonstration of how often some of the best and most cherished aspects of our home city and state end with “...if you’re white.” We built ScoreSide in order to engage and connect charitable giving to our daily lives in small but meaningful ways. But as we’ve recently witnessed, sometimes large, direct, and powerful actions must be taken to make lasting progress possible.
These past weeks have also shown us the uplifting parts of our community that can transcend our differences. We have seen the city we know and love in the peaceful protests, the outpouring of support from individuals, calls for change, cleanup efforts, community outreach for those in need, and tributes to a life pointlessly lost.
With these things in mind, we have been asking ourselves how we can best use our resources to contribute to our community and help sustain the passion for addressing racial injustice that has emerged across our country. Although sports remain in hiatus, they will return in the coming weeks and months. And when they do, we want to be ready. We’re looking to partner with nonprofits that are committed to impacting our community and fighting systematic racism, so once sports start up again, we can use our platform to help support this vital work. In the meantime, we’ve taken the following steps:
We’ve made donations of time and money to causes across the city focusing on rebuilding communities, businesses, and lives as well as larger systematic efforts.
We’ve signed on to the letter drafted by the Forge North Leadership Council and have pledged to take specific and meaningful action to build an inclusive startup community and advance racial equity across the Minneapolis-St. Paul region.
In addition, as we publicly affirm equity, inclusiveness, and diversity in our partners, staff, and internal and external efforts, we commit to provide goals, status, and progress assessments as part of our regular board of director meetings.
We aspire to make ScoreSide into a place that brings together fans -- all fans. We want stadiums, living rooms, neighborhood bars, and online groups to feel like a community where the loudest differences about color are whether we root for purple and gold; green and yellow; or blue and orange.
We are committed to inclusivity and believe there is no place for anything less. We stand in solidarity with all who are unfairly attacked and ignored. We also would love to hear what you have to say. Send us all your thoughts, comments, and suggestions. We are listening. feedback@scoreside.io