Earlier this week, Bandcamp announced that it would donate 100% of its portion of sales on June 19th, also referred to as Juneteenth, to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. The move comes as an effort to support racial justice, equality, and pushing for cultural change amid the ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd at the hands of four Minneapolis police officers in May.
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“The recent killings of George Floyd, Tony McDade, Sean Reed, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the ongoing state-sanctioned violence against black people in the US and around the world are horrific tragedies,” Bandcamp said in a statement posted to its website.
The company also reaffirmed its commitment to fighting for racial justice by allocating an additional$30,000 per year to partner with organizations spearheading those causes. Additionally, the statement recognized that though the issues of racial justice and equality are at the forefront of communal conversation now, it is important to ensure we sustain the dialogue and enact real change, as opposed to just donating money to the cause:
The current moment is part of a long-standing, widespread, and entrenched system of structural oppression of people of color, and real progress requires a sustained and sincere commitment to political, social, and economic racial justice and change. We’ll continue to promote diversity and opportunity through our mission to support artists and the products we build to empower them, who we promote through the Bandcamp Daily, and our relationships with local artists and organizations through our Oakland space, how we operate as a team, and who and how we hire.
Bandcamp closed the statement on their Juneteenth fundraiser by compelling its audience to support racial equality at the local level. Read the entire statement here.
In addition to solidifying itself as a premier musician-centered streaming service—reserving 85% of each sale for the artist, compared to iTunes, which only offers 70%—Bandcamp has also shown a deeply-rooted commitment to fundraising efforts. Earlier this year, Bandcamp waived its revenue share on March 20th and May 1st, raising over $11 million for artists struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Head to Bandcamp’s website on June 19th to support its mission of racial justice, equality, and change.