RACISM & INJUSTICE
THE BLOOM SERIES
keshia
The recent racial events have strangely felt familiar to me. Although I didn’t grow up experiencing outright racism, my parents taught me about the past of our people. And, this past, this history is apart of me. The recent events have reminded me...well really us...that it wasn’t too long ago that segregation was very much apart of the normal day to day in our country. Although scars do heal, they truly take time to heal. I’ve personally had to come to terms with the fact that I get to live in a time where I can help to keep that healing process in motion. And this comes with the weight of knowing that those who have come before me were faithful to this cause and got us to where we are today. It’s my choice...our choice...today to not drop the baton but instead to continue the marathon towards equality.
I am an observer. I watch what people do over listening to what they say. The past couple of months have helped me to see my relationships with others in a whole new light. Right after George Floyd, I had a handful of my white friends reach out and ask how I was doing. And, by doing so, they opened the conversation...the race conversation. In light of recent events, I’ve observed that the people who want to see change aren’t those who just say “oh, I’m not racist” ...no, instead, it is those who take times out of their “busy” day to be humble enough to do something by opening up the conversation and saying “hey, I actually don’t know it all, and in fact, I may say something wrong in this conversation, and I am willing and want to learn.” These are the people that will be the difference makers in this generation. And, I am grateful for each and every one.
After George Floyd, I was talking with a friend, who is white, about race. He opened up the conversation with me which was very much appreciated. At some point in the conversation, he admitted to having thought that racism had been over for decades and definitely had to be over after Obama became president. Of course, I laughed, but then I answered with grace. As we open up these conversations, I’m learning that people, both black and white, have to feel emotionally safe. Racial conversations ARE uncomfortable and create anxiety for the average person. So, we need safe spaces (safe people and groups) where we can share what we think and humbly accept what others think or have thought. This is the only way that we will get vulnerable enough so that real change can take place. In her book “Racial Reconciliation 2.0,” Brenda Salter McNeil puts it this way, “transformation requires disruption and a degree of chaos to create a sense of urgency that change must happen. However, there must also be enough psychological safety that the chaos does not completely overwhelm our ability to reflect and reorganize ourselves.”
I am hopeful because there’s clearly been a shift. It is no longer people who look exactly like me advocating for change. It’s just PEOPLE. People...no matter their shade and no matter their color...have come to the realization that it’s the human race that we are fighting for here. We all have implicit biases that we deal with. But, more than ever before, we are facing these biases and we are not running away. We have come to terms with the fact that what is done in the dark will come to light. The true motivations of those around us are being shown. So, yes, I am hopeful. I’m hopeful because we now have the opportunity to change. We have an open window to make a difference. So let’s take it! We are here on this Earth for such a time as this.
— Keshia
sydney
The current climate of our society, specifically concerning racial tensions, have affected me greatly, mainly because my husband is Black. His whole life, he has dealt with racism, and I never experienced any sort of it until we married. We get stares, dirty looks, and we’ve been laughed at. But none of those things compare to the fear I have of him just living his everyday life. George Floyd’s case obviously struck a cord with igniting protests and imperative conversations regarding racism and white privilege. But the story that shook me the most was Ahmaud Arbery’s.
My husband runs almost every morning. And Ahmaud, running while black, was racially profiled by two white men who attacked him, then shot and killed him because they thought he looked like someone who had committed a robbery. The reality is, every time my husband leaves the house, let alone runs just like Ahmaud did, I have a fear that his skin color could be a death sentence. That some people think he is guilty of something just because of the way he looks. The hardest part about it all is that I want to try and protect my husband in any way I can. But after talking with him about all of these murders that have happened recently, and how they’ve impacted his mental health, he’s had to teach me that he doesn’t want me to protect him. Because the reality is I just can’t — the only One who can is God, and he doesn’t want to live in fear every day by not living his life the way he has the right to. All he wants is for me to support him.
Being with my husband, I’ve learned so much about the privileges I’m afforded just by being white; from not having to worry about getting pulled over by a cop, to buying a pack of gum at the store and not even thinking twice about not getting my receipt or a bag to put it in (another thing my husband taught me we must make sure we do when we’re together).
The most important thing I’ve learned though, is that I’m never done learning. I know I must commit myself to learning how to be anti-racist, and fighting for the justice and equality not only of my husband and future bi-racial children, but for all people who face oppression just because of the way God made them.
— Sydney
skylar
It feels like every week, there is a new headline on the news about a black person being killed and its scary. So many questions run through my mind.. “How many more times will this happen?” “What if its someone I know next?” “What if its someone in my family? One of my friends?” It’s happened so many times, and while it’s scary, I almost feel numb to it now. With every new injustice, I feel so hurt, but I am never surprised because this is how it has always been. But I do wonder how many times this has happened not on film for the whole world to see. How many black lives have been claimed that we didn’t see or hear about? How many black lives have we not had the chance to hear their stories?
We have to understand that this is not new. Throughout history, this has been happening. Black voices have been silenced and black lives have been taken for centuries. But I am tired of it and it has to end. I hope for a better society for those I love and my future family. I do think positive changes will come eventually, but there is still so much work to be done. We have to be actively working towards the society that we want. The black lives matter movement is not a trend, so we have to keep fighting for what is right. Positive changes will only come if we stand together.
I have learned that it isn’t enough for people to not be racist, they have to be anti-racist. Words are not enough if they aren’t followed by actions. We can’t just say we are committed to fighting racism and injustice, we must also act. We have to be willing to have tough conversations with people and to stand up for each other. Before the past few months, I have never really talked with my friends about racism and injustice. But I think it’s important to have those awkward and uncomfortable conversations about this topic so that my friends can learn about my feelings and perspective.
The advice I have is to further educate ourselves. There is no excuse for us to not be educated with all of the resources we have available for us. It is important to read about the black history we were not taught in school and to read about current black stories and black lives. We need to take a further step in educating not only our generation but also the younger generation because they are the future. I also think it is important to be kind to each other. People have to come together to support each other during this time, especially those who are personally affected by it. Racial injustice affects us all in different ways, so it is important we are considerate and help each other through it.
— Skylar
jolee
I have had so many conversations the past few months about racial inequality and systemic problems in America that I would have probably never had if it was not for the Black Lives Matter movement. I have spoken to almost everyone in my life about it at some point in the past month, and those conversations have been so eye opening. I have always believed that actions speak way louder than words, and I try every day to love the people around me and treat everyone I interact with how I would like to be treated. I am guilty of being in the mindset that as long as I was not hurting anyone and I was doing what was right, then that was all I could do. I have learned that that is not the case, and while you only have control over your own words and actions, you do have the ability and responsibility to use your actions and words to make things change.
I wouldn’t necessarily say that my opinions and views have changed much, but I will say that I have way more information now than ever to base my opinions off of. For example, I have always known that there was horrible injustice when it came to the incarceration of Black men and women. Now I have so much information about the Prison Industrial Complex, the injustice within the legal systems and more which proves and explains why I have the opinions that I have. I recognize that this information has always been out there, and there is no excuse for just now taking the time to dive deeper and learn. This is where I believe my actions have changed. I have taken a lot of time personally to reflect on where I have not done enough, and where I need to be better. I have been looking for more opportunities to listen, but also taking advantage of the things I can do on my own.
One situation has really stuck with me when it comes to racial injustice I have personally witnessed. A few years ago, I was hanging out with a friend who was a Black man. We were driving somewhere when he got pulled over. He said he wasn’t speeding and we had no idea why he was being stopped. Instead of walking up to the driver side of the car, the officer walked to my window as the passenger. When I rolled it down, he asked me if everything was okay, and if I needed any help. I was so confused and did not understand what was going on. I told the officer I was fine, and he assured me before heading back to his car that if I needed help I could ask. My immediate thoughts were “was I making a weird face while we were driving?” or “Is there something hanging out of the car?” It wasn’t until I looked at my friends face that I realized what was going on. I know it was not my fault, but it hurt my heart so deeply to have been a part of a situation that hurt him. This was the first time I had ever personally witnessed and been a part of discrimination and injustice and it is something I will never forget.
One of the many things I have learned over the past few months is the importance of politics. I am definitely guilty in the past of being one of those people who just “doesn’t like politics” so I chose to not pay attention to anything I felt was political. I grew up in a family that rarely, if ever, talked about politics and I am also very non-confrontational and generally like when everyone just gets along (that is the Enneagram Type 2 in me). Normally, when conversations that are political come up, it tends to lead to what I saw as disagreement or arguing. My eyes have really been opened that me “not caring” about politics is a huge example of White Privilege. I have been involved in many more political conversations this summer and I have learned how to voice my opinion, now that I have one. I have been able to learn so much from conversations I would have shied away from before, and instead of seeing disagreements or differing opinions as negative, I see them as space to learn and grow. I have been listening to a few podcasts and trying to stay up to date with the news in order to be more educated, and I now know how valuable each and every voice can be, including my own.
This has been said a whole lot lately, but I feel like it is really important to be able to admit that you are wrong. Sometimes that can be hard, especially when your words or actions were not intended to hurt someone but they end up doing so. It may not always be comfortable, but if we don’t admit where we were wrong or misinformed, there is no way to learn and grow. I also feel like it is important to know and respect people’s boundaries. It is important to listen to people’s words, experiences and thoughts, but I think there is a fine line when it comes to asking for those things. It is not the responsibility of Black people to “teach” you things that can easily be learned through a google search. They are not required to share their experiences if they are not comfortable doing so, just so you can listen. It is so important to have conversations and to listen, but I just feel like there needs to be the level of understanding and respect going in. All in all, I hope my words and actions show that I am actively an ally in the fight against racial prejudice and injustice. I always am willing to learn new things and grow, and I will do everything in my power to be an advocate for change.
— Jolee
katie
With the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Elijah McClain, Rayshard Brooks, Riah Milton, Remmie Fells, Robert Fuller, and many others, I think for myself and other white people, it is imperative that we understand the context for why we are where we are today with the growing movement for racial justice, and understand the role we have in fighting against systemic racism.
I was raised to respect authority, to not treat people differently based on skin color or any other factor, and to feel patriotic about being a citizen of the United States. Because that was my worldview and my environment, I didn’t understand why there were riots happening in Ferguson, Missouri in 2016 after the murder of Michael Brown. In seeing what’s continuing to transpire now, 4 years later, I see a lot of individuals in my community questioning the same things that I did and wondering where their place is in conversations about race. Without understanding the complex history of racism and how it’s evolved, it can be easy to dismiss the reactions of entire groups of people and subsequently cause harm to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Having white privilege means I have the privilege to never consider the things that I avoid due to my privilege, such as: profiling, explicit/implicit racism, being expected to assimilate, police profiling, and much more. It’s an even harder thing to swallow to realize that I not only don’t experience these things, but I benefit from them happening because of systemic racism. When racial injustice occurs, I see and hear a lot of white people saying that they are trapped by their feelings of guilt and exasperation. The problem with both of those emotions is that neither of those feelings about racial injustice actually work to create the structural change needed to address the injustice. I attended a conference in St. Louis in 2017 where I had the opportunity to hear a woman speak about the protests happening at the time and the police brutality she had endured as a Black woman protesting. She introduced the idea of “calling people in versus calling them out” as a way of changing the hearts and minds of others, and it has stuck with me ever since. It is easy to block someone on social media, or write someone off for a post they share, or even the political candidate they endorse. But when I think about what helped me overcome ignorance, it was numerous people calling me in, asking me questions, helping me to understand that there was a different perspective I was missing. It included a commitment to learning through travel, paying for classes, reading, watching, and purchasing content created by Black voices.
As a white person, it can feel uncomfortable to talk about race, but as Malcom X used to tell white people who asked him what they could do to make a difference: Racism exists in white communities and therefore our work to address racial injustice needs to happen with the people that it would be easier to block on social media and write off. How else can we expect things to change if we don’t extend the same learning to others that we experience ourselves? Instead of placing the burden of education on BIPOC, we have to utilize the numerous resources readily available. My hope is that if we begin to adjust the people who need education the most, we will see an even larger collective of people fighting for the liberation of marginalized voices.
— Katie
mandy
