For Those Asking What They Can Do

Seven points of wisdom for the struggle for change: for EVERYONE (yes you too) who does not identify as Black

1.     Develop a robust vocabulary regarding race, systems of privilege, class and justice.  All approaches to the dismantilization of power structures are first rooted in language.

How we define our world shapes the opinions we form and the values we establish as “right” and “wrong”.

 As a point of reference, Black People and People of Color are NOT interchangeable terms and they mean VERY different things.  It’s not my job to explain to you why they are different. Why not? Well, because of point #2…

2.     You have the ABSOLUTE responsibility to educate yourself on matters and experiences other than the ones that serve as your default.

 It is not the job of Black People, or in a broader sense POC (see what I did there?) to explain the structures of white supremacy, white privilege, racism, police brutality and any other litany of experiences that are byproducts of a society that advances your standards as the normative view.

3.     Stop chasing the need for, and expression of, empathy because for most black folks, we are already clear that you can never empathize with what it’s like to be us.  Now, sympathy and compassion are both attainable and within arm’s reach.

 Sympathy suggests that it’s rather appropriate and realistic that as a human we would expect you to be able to see suffering and acknowledge the injustices within it.  And compassion takes this expectation and advances it to a course of action to rectify or alleviate said suffering.

 Don’t just live in the emotion of sympathy without incorporating a physical response through compassion.

4.     Stop letting the FEAR of being wrong, saying something stupid, sounding uninformed or not knowing what to do paralyze you from speaking and showing up.

 Stand as an ally with dignity and a profound sense of care.

 So, those are some short-term, immediate courses of action you can take to help what’s happening in the world.  Here are some long-term strategies that can offer enlightenment and hope to the process.

5.     As a new way of life, regularly place yourself and your close family and children in community experiences where YOU are the underrepresented members and where the fully represented group dictates the rules, social norms and principles of how the space is governed.

 And no, I don’t mean in “proximity” to underrepresented groups like attending a Beyoncé concert of being the first to buy a house in the “developing” part of town.

 For example, make your children try out for a position on a pee-wee sports team in a community on the “other side of town.”

6.     Another long-term approach is simple but profound.  ON a regular, consistent basis, invite Black People of all backgrounds and experiences into your HOMES.

 Take a minute and truly think:

 Within the past 12 months, how many Black People (number of individual people, not number of times) have you personally invited into your home?

For dinner?

For wine-tasting?

For birthday parties, celebrations and BBQs?

For book clubs?

Or just to come over for a visit?

 The home is the most intimate of spaces, as who we invite into our homes communicates a level of trust and openness we have with those individuals.

 If everyone who’s ever been inside of your home has looked like you, that there’s a good chance that the groups you associate with and call friends outside of your home more than likely look like you too.

7.     The last point of wisdom is to utilize three major resources that you consistently have at your immediate disposal: your words, your money and your time.

 Personally, I am much less concerned with what you post on social media than  am about what you do and don’t say BEHIND closed doors, especially in response to members of your family, friend circles and colleagues, who vehemently disagree with issues centered on race and social injustice.

 Use your words as tools of action.  And, if you consider yourself a real ally, be willing to risk alienation from the people with whom you have a friendship/relationship.

 It comes with the territory.

 With your money, donate to causes that support fighting injustices such as the ones we’ve witnessed recently.  It doesn’t have to be all or nothing.  You can still give to your favorite charities, butt, maybe this year, just add at least ONE cause that supports the work of anti-racism and/or black empowerment.

 And finally, with your time, use some of it to benefit those in the struggle.  Make a couple of phone calls or send emails to local and state officials expressing your concerns about what you are witnessing.  Join a march or a 5K walk in response to police brutality.  Start a discussion group with your friends and family about ways that non-Black members of our society can help our Black neighbors.

 Get active.

 If any of these points create a sense of discomfort, tension or uneasiness, then take a minute to interrogate WHY it bothers you.

 There’s a good chance that it’s due to one of these seven points I’ve listed.

 With that being said, keep trying. As I’ve said to my Black Folks in closing, I believe in you. And you should too!

 Peace and Blessings.