Southsea bookshop helps fight against racism through selling educational books and donates profits to the Minnesota Freedom Fund

Pigeon Books, in Albert Road, Southsea has stocked up on educational books, which touch on issues surrounding race and how to tackle racism, following Black Lives Matter protests across after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week.

The 46-year-old was restrained by a police officer who has now been charged with third-degree murder.

Husband and wife duo, Mel and Phil Davies, who own the shop, received a lot of orders over the last few days for books Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race, by Reni Eddo-Lodge, and Me and White Supremacy, by Layla F Saad, and decided to stock up on similar books.

The Southsea couple are also donating £1 from the sale of every educational book sold to the Minnesota Freedom Fund - a not-for-profit scheme that pays criminal bail and immigration bond for those who cannot afford it and is working toward ending cash bail in Minnesota and across the US.

Mel said: ‘As we continue our own education of racial inequalities, we want to make sure that we are not profiting from the work of others without giving something back to the communities affected, which is why we are donating a proportion of the sale costs.

‘It’s so important to support the movement and these books are excellent for anyone wanting to educate themselves.’

Demand for the books is now so high that some are having to be reprinted.

You can order the books at pigeonbooks.co.uk

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