Tattoo studio supports Black Lives Matter with fund-raising artwork

Chelsea Burwin, Scott Pilkington and Amy Lofthouse, from Alchemy Tattoo Studio in Wallgate, have each designed a variation of a raised fist, to support the demonstrations against racial inequality that have been taking place across the globe.

Proceeds from the prints will go to Reclaim The Block, an organisation based in Minneapolis, the city where George Floyd was murdered on May 25. Reclaim The Block was founded in 2018 and campaigns for Minneapolis community and city council members to redistribute police department budgets into other areas of the city.

Chelsea, one of Alchemy’s artists, said: “We chose [Reclaim The Block] because they are trying to move money from the police department to other places that really promote health and safety for community. We all support the Black Lives Matter movement and it has been a concern for a long time. But we have been made aware again, so we are doing things to help support the cause.”

Protests have been staged across the world, including UK cities such as Manchester, London and Bristol, where the statue of slave trader Edward Colston was torn down and thrown into the water.

Rioting and looting has broken out in several American cities, but the team at Alchemy said this should not detract from the wider message of the movement.

Chelsea said: “There are a lot of people getting out of hand with it, but as a whole it is sending a message better than it has for a long time, that police brutality is something that needs to change. Not all of them [police officers] are bad, but there a lot of them that hide behind the badge and abuse their authority.”

To purchase one of the prints, visit www.alchemyblm.bigcartel.com