I'm sure I’m not the only one overwhelmed by the ongoing inequality, injustice and violence facing Black people. Change is needed.

The anger and sadness you're all feeling is something that I, along with millions of others, have been dealing with for our entire lives. I was taught from a young age that, as a Black woman, I needed to work twice as hard to get half as far in a world that is not built for me, or for Black people, to succeed. Diversity, representation, and amplifying Black voices are issues close to my heart; especially as the suppression of Black people is still prevalent in workplaces and the wider marketing and advertising industry.

In recent weeks, WARC has been considering how we can take practical steps to make a positive change in our industry, even after the newscycle stops and the movement isn't trending anymore. At WARC, we aim to rid the world of ineffective marketing; and we understand that diversity is at the heart of true marketing effectiveness. But without long-term, committed change and focus we are likely to have the same conversations year after year. We, like many others, have a long road ahead of us. But this is an issue dear to mine, and many others' hearts – and if we can make any influence in our industry and the world, that is powerful.

So, we took a step back and thought about what actions WARC can commit to and how we can start to make a positive difference on this important issue as a business. At the heart of this is the WARC Commitments to Racial Equality. These principles hold us accountable and keep our focus on what WARC can change and influence in the long term, with meaningful action behind the words.

Building on many years of covering diversity challenges in the industry, this week WARC launched the new Black Lives Matter content hub. This will be an on-going, constantly updated series to educate marketers on these crucial issues and give them practical tools to implement positive change in their businesses.

The hub consists of four areas:

  • Ongoing coverage from WARC’s team of journalists on the response to Black Lives Matter from the marketing industry.
  • Best practice and case studies which focus on Black audiences and communities.
  • Practical advice for brands on brand purpose and brand activism.
  • WARC’s Commitments to Racial Equality.

We encourage you to explore the hub, which features insights from brands who have embraced diversity and re-evaluated their purpose – including Procter & Gamble who stepped up to tackle systemic racism with marketing action – and practical steps in what to do now in Five considerations for building activist brands. There will be much more content added in coming weeks and months.

Now is the time to make moves for real change, to learn from each other as an industry to be better, to think broader and to tackle systemic racism. We look forward to working with the industry to make a positive change.