Read on for a handpicked selection of the good, the bad, and the one to watch in the world of social impact communications. This week, we’re highlighting the campaign to stop racism against Asian people, the ongoing implosion at Pride in London, and Brewdog and Tony Chocoloney’s upcoming collaboration.

| NAILED IT: #StopAsianHate 

The #StopAsianHate campaign has been trending across social media worldwide. It’s designed to show solidarity with the Asian community after an alarming spike in hate crimes towards Asian people, including the racially motivated shooting of six Asian women in Atlanta last week. Users online are spreading the hashtag to show support and also share experiences of racism that has increased since the beginning of the pandemic.

It’s thought that the rise in hate crimes has been fuelled by Trump’s normalising of racist messaging around COVID-19, which he branded “the Chinese virus” or “Kung Flu” because the virus started in Wuhan, China.

The campaign aims to spread awareness and information around the experiences of racism Asian people have faced historically and to stop the scapegoating that’s been happening since the pandemic started. 

This isn’t just a problem for America. According to End the Virus of Racism, there has been a 300% increase in hate crimes towards people of East and Southeast Asian heritage since the start of the pandemic in the UK. 

We all need to do our bit to call out racism when we see it. Here’s how you can help:

• Read and share these: #StopAsianHate and How to Be an Ally graphics
• Report hate crimes if you see them here
• Donate to one of these organisations to support the Asian community

| ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: Pride in London shows how not to apologise 

Pride in London has turned a crisis into a catastrophe thanks to its handling of the latest claims of institutional racism against it. 

Last week,  Rhammel Afflick, the organisation’s Director of Communications and most senior Black volunteer, resigned citing long-standing failings by the leadership to support their Black and POC members.

The next day, the organisation’s 10-strong advisory board resigned en masse, saying that there is ‘no desire from Pride in London to take onboard recommendations’ to improve representation and diversity. 

The string of resignations followed Pride in London’s recent decision to allow the Metropolitan Police to join this year’s parade, despite calls to ban them following their handling of Black Lives Matter protests last summer. 

In response, Pride in London wrote a detailed non-apology which must surely go down in history as the least genuine of its kind. Explaining why five of its Directors were stepping down with immediate effect, the statement spends most of its 14 paragraphs highlighting its disgraced leaders’ ‘monumental contribution’ to the LGBT cause. Most seriously, it failed to use the word ‘racism’ once, despite this being the central accusation against it.

Pride in London is supposed to champion those who mainstream society has failed to. In issuing this response, it’s shown itself to be more concerned with the reputations of its leadership than with the experiences of its membership. It appears in its current form to be unfit for purpose. 

| ONE TO WATCH: Brewdog x Tony Chocolonely’s upcoming partnership

Brewdog is an awesome company. They make carbon negative beer. Tony Chocoloney is also an awesome company. They’re trying to make chocolate production slave-free. These two brands are leading the way in making ethical, sustainable products, and as such are both B-Corp certified, meaning they’ve proven themselves to be genuinely for-good for-profits.

Which is why we were very excited when Brewdog’s founder, James Watt, teased an upcoming collaboration between the two companies over on Twitter. He’s inviting beer lovers to get in touch with their own suggestions for the new drink, which no doubt will be some sort of delicious carbonated chocolatey brew.

We’re loving the spirit of creative collaboration on show, particularly from two companies that represent an ideal future for consumerism – where we can buy and love products knowing they aren’t costing the earth or other people’s wellbeing.