White fragility

Over the past week, I have been closely looking at my community and the inherent offence that comes with it. Why are people in my community so desperate to prove that they were not a racist before this? Why are they so desperate to prove that they aren't one now? What do they do past posting inspirational quotes? Social media is practically buzzing with defensiveness, faces behind computer screens getting redder and redder, desperate to rid themselves of any guilt by sharing countless slogans, participating in #blackouttuesday, and weeping for the black community.

Rather than genuinely engaging in racial discourse white people can be seen to have used this revolutionary outcry sparked by the racially motivated murder of George Floyd as a way to exonerate themselves from blame. The fact that #alllivesmatter is the number one trending hashtag on twitter currently speaks to the problem that has held the process of racial discord back for centuries, white fragility.

The problem is that white people have never had to consider their race as combative, since birth they have simply been safe, the coded statements of “good schools” and “good neighbourhoods” being predominantly white has been a given. They have never had to talk to their children about how to not get murdered by the police, and while police reform MUST happen, it's a inherently racist society that's the problem.

The aggressiveness that follows a conversation about race in a predominantly white group proves that white people and people of colour think of safety in two different terms entirely, while white people say they feel actually “unsafe” when a mere conversation about race comes up, what they really mean is uncomfortable, and it is this uncomfortablity that is still holding strong the walls of segregation, long since built from white privilege.

People of colour are taught how to actually avoid situations which will bring them prejudice or death, can you imagine for a second that your mother had to sit you down and tell you how to not get shot even if you are innocent? This is why “all lives matter” is in fact, a completely useless and ignorant statement.

As a western society, it's safe to say that everything from education to entertainment is whitewashed. History taught in schools focuses solely on white people, with perhaps a semester covering people of colour, which usually only briefly covers slavery negating all black culture apart from this. In cop movies a white man is paired with a black man that grew up in the ghetto and is therefore less privileged, along with other tropes drilled into us as a majority, better positioning our blinders to the way that people of colour are portrayed.

America's next top model front page was entirely white, highlighting the segregation and whitewashing of the beauty industry as a whole. President Trump actively shuts down media questions from people of colour and instead focuses his attention on largely white men, deeming their questions to be sound, and calling one reporter Abby Phillip a loser, and accusing her of asking racist questions, during a three day period where he actively discredited questions from people of colour in a room filled to the brim with white men.

Black people are used to systematic racism, it's in their life every day, whether it's on a TV screen, in passive racism and microaggressions, or being looked over for opportunities that a white person would feel is their right, it's not sad, it's an outrage that has been an outrage for hundreds of years.

We were born into a world where we were told if it hurt us it was wrong, giving credence to stereotypes that the colour of a person's skin determines whether they are more or less capable of violence. This is why it is not a black person's job to educate us, it is not their job to comfort us while their people die on the streets, and it is not our job to tell a black person how to mourn, how to protest, or how they should be being heard.

As a white person writing this I am inherently privileged, if I go shopping in an expensive store I won't be followed, I won't be looked over for anything at work because of the colour of my skin, I won't have to constantly explain my culture to make it palatable to society, and I won't have to worry if Black Lives Matter all over people's social media feeds is a fad, or if people are actually willing to fight for me.

As a white woman it is my responsibility to educate myself, there is no level of learning that is too deep, it is my responsibility to leave my black friends alone and find out where I can help. I do not need help right now, but I do need to use what little platform I have to share what I've learned and encourage the conversation about race. The defensiveness that I see every day on my Facebook is what's keeping racism alive. It is not enough to say,

“Everyone knows i'm not a racist person”

Now is the time to be vocal about being actively anti racist, share resources and Black owned businesses, and to not insert ourselves into their grief. If you actually listen to what is being said by black people they are telling us what to do, they are telling us to educate ourselves, fight alongside them for justice, and change the rhetoric forever.

Instagram is full of “2020 is cancelled”, but what if it wasn't? What if this is the most important year we have ever lived through, you can't simply go to your happy place and pretend this isn't happening, this isn't a question of, “the worlds gone mad”, the world is finally demanding justice. Below are some fantastic resources which include where and how to donate if you're broke, (like me), fabulous black owned businesses to support while boycotting other businesses that don't support Black Lives Matter. It's time to make a change, educate yourselves.

How to donate if you're broke - Watch this whole video and DO NOT skip ads, all revenue go towards BLM

What to sign-

Scroll to the bottom of this page and find 9 petitions to sign

Fantastic black owned businesses to support-