"Today I
want to talk about why we have an eracism minute every week. Some people
are under the impression that we want all of the white folks out there to feel
bad. Some have asked why they aren’t more positive. Some feel
talking about race makes it more divisive. Some have wondered why we
don’t talk about other issues or types of oppressions. I hope this will
help.
First off, it
is never our goal to make you feel bad. We may want you to feel
uncomfortable because talking about race is uncomfortable. But the only
way we can become more aware is to be uncomfortable and learn.
There are many
kinds of oppressions – sexism, classism, heterosexism, religious bigotry,
etc. What is unique about racism is the ‘institutionality’ and visibility
of it. The entire structure of society - from economic justice to police
justice and mass incarceration to health justice - are stacked against black
people and there is no way for them to hide who they are. Race is
the first thing people see.
We will need
to flesh out all the ways black people have been specifically targeted from
accumulating wealth and have been prevented from having access to “The American
Dream”. We will need to analyze the dynamics at play that adversely
impact the health of black people. We will need to talk about why we have
such an enormous prison population and why is disproportionately people of
color.
But I think we
need to start with the most basic aspect of all: the constant risk black people
face for their safety. For all you white people: do you ever worry that
you might get pulled over for a broken tail light and end up dead? Do you
ever worry if you pull out a cell phone a police officer might think it’s a gun
and Shoot you? Do you ever think that sometime in the middle of the night
the police will barge into your apartment and kill you? I know I don’t.
I think at
least ½ of the room can understand and relate to this fear. Women.
I’m sure there has been some point in each of your lives where you have been
alone, at night, in an area that feels deserted or otherwise unsafe. What
do you do? What do you think about? You stand straight and walk
briskly – maybe holding your keys between your fingers in case of attack and
keep your ears and eyes peeled. And the whole time you are
terrified. Terrified! Imagine feeling this every day for your whole
life! Think about what a toll that would take on your psyche.
I know every
person in here has a good heart and wants the best for everybody. That’s
why we invite you to the struggle. We don’t want to call you out – we
want to call you in. Because just as women had to convince enough men to
give them the vote – they could not do it for themselves, likewise white people
have to be the ones to deconstruct racism, black people cannot do it. So
please, welcome the discomfort - lean into it and use it as an
opportunity to learn. We are all in the same boat and it is a life
long journey. And unless white people talk about it regularly, it won‘t
change.
Step 1 –
learn, Step 2 – act.
In that vein,
you are all invited to the black lives matter meeting tomorrow at 7:00"
