March 20, 2019
T-Shirts Raise $25K For Families Of Mosque Shooting Victims
A charity in New Zealand is using message T-shirts to raise money to support the families of people murdered in the mass shooting at two mosques in Christchurch, NZ last week.
Good Bitches Baking, a network of kindness-spreading volunteers that bake delicious treats for people experiencing hardship, began selling the T-shirts on Tuesday evening.
Our Kindness For Christchurch tees are on sale now. Wear them with pride. Be kind. Kun tayibana. https://t.co/xnyBf2Jz1F pic.twitter.com/Edg3d99yED
— Good Bitches Baking (@GoodBitchesBake) March 19, 2019
As seen above, the shirts read “Be Kind” in English and Arabic. The supporting imagery is symbolic and meaningful. The olive leaves represent peace, the crescent and star symbolize Islam, and the pītau are native New Zealand fern fronds. The shirts sold quickly:
You are all beautiful people. Hundreds of tees sold in just a few hours. So far, we've raised well over $5000 to donate directly to our Muslim whanau affected by this tragedy. Ka rawe! Imagine what we can achieve in a week! 💚
— Good Bitches Baking (@GoodBitchesBake) March 19, 2019
By Wednesday evening (in New Zealand), Good Bitches Baking had sold 600 shirts, raising $25,000 for victims’ families.
The “Be Kind” tees campaign is the latest high-profile example of using decorated apparel to spread a powerful message and support a cause. Learn more about that here.
The March 15th shooting at the Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre mosque in Christchurch claimed the lives of 50 people. A further 50 people were injured in the attack – the deadliest peacetime killing in New Zealand history. The suspected perpetrator is Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian suspected of being a white supremacist. Authorities believe Tarrant targeted the mosques specifically to kill Muslims.