Hello, I'm Jane Perrone, and this is a podcast. It's called On the Ledge.

In episode one four three we are tackling the furry and disturbing topic of mealybugs.

Plus, I answer a question about a floppy calatia.

Before we get started, this show is usually a refuge from the events of the outside world,

but the goings-on in America and around the world in response

to the death of George Floyd is something I can't ignore. And I never thought I'd be quoting

Megan Markle, but as she said the other day, the only wrong thing to say is to say nothing. So I just wanted to say that

for all of you who are in the US, or indeed anywhere around the world, who are feeling enraged,

angry, sad at the fact that racism is still a part of our lives in a fundamental way, then I join you in spirit because I feel that too.

Because it needs to be said and shouted from the rooftops, black lives matter.

I've decided to give the ad revenue from this episode to a number of different causes that are

tackling racism, both in the UK and the US.

So far, I've given money to the Marshall Project, which is a non-profit journalism organisation,

which writes about criminal justice, to the Innocence Project,

which works to reform the US criminal justice system by helping to get wrongly convicted people

exonerated. I've also given a donation to the Loveland Foundation, which is a therapy fund for

black women and girls in the US. Thanks to listener Paula for flogging that one up and she's running a

raffle for a painting she's done and I'll put details of that

in the show notes and seeing as I'm in the UK where I'm sad to say racism is also a major issue

I've also given donations to the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust and the black curriculum

which works to get black history onto the curriculum in British schools.

I have got some more money to give and I'd like to offer you guys the chance to tell me

...