Radical Dreams
There is a super cool business that I want to tell y’all about. It is called Radical Dreams and they create really awesome pins, patches, and buttons that promote ideas and beliefs that I think a lot of us should focus on, especially in today’s world. I was first introduced to them by a friend when she gave me a gift certificate to their shop. After spending my gift certificate, I continued to buy more pins in hopes of handing them out to friends and family.According to the About Us section, the business was founded by a black medical student in an effort to provide more diverse pins that display socially conscious messages, specifically for the black culture. Here is the most amazing part: they donate a portion of their proceeds to a lot of amazing organizations.
I want to forewarn you that this story may come off as some performative mess, but my point is not to share some good thing that I did, but instead share something that you can do too.
The Kaepernick kneeling pin is my personal favorite and I keep returning to the site to buy more. I was at the Hollywood Bowl for a concert recently and the artists were backed by an orchestra. They opened the show with the national anthem. I stayed in my seat, but it felt like the entire bowl stood. I looked around to see if anyone else stayed seated and saw a couple a few rows back. We legit did the ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ at each other. A few songs later, I remembered that I had my Kaepernick pin on my hoodie and asked the person behind me to pass it back to them. He handed it to the woman and after she saw what it was, she shouted thank you. She handed it to the man, he looked at it, and promptly put his fist in the air and gave me the Wakanda salute. I yelled, “I can’t do that back, but I got you!”This is such a ridiculous share, I know. BUT I AM SO HAPPY THAT I HAD A PIN TO GIVE! I am happy that I bought something that is meaningful, that shares a super important message, and gives back to so many people in need. I recognize that this is so minor and I am not out here changing lives with this story, but it is my hope that you will read this, learn about the company, buy a few pins, and maybe do the same.Together we can do better.