RACISM: A Mighty Change?
Tuesday 2nd June 2020
My Instagram feed was filled with black squares as the world showed solidarity to Black Lives Matter. Social Media was flooded with donation links to help protesters, books to educate on black history and suggestions of influencers to follow for more information and incite.
The murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis became the catalyst for the world condemning racism and preaching to combat it. This is a big step. For centuries, people with black and brown skin have been treated as inferior. I’ve watched it in ‘Roots,’ read about it in books and have seen the injustices, which within the black community is a normality. Black people are three times as likely to be arrested as whites and people of mixed heritage are twice as likely, but some argue that racism doesn’t exist. Even with the most recent case of George Floyd and the chilling video watched by millions, there are still some who believe that his murder was justified and continue to deny that this act was motivated by racism. That’s the problem: Human beings won’t accept things that don’t fit in with their particular view of the world. If you are not affected by it, or you’ve not experienced it, it’s not happening.
It has taken me some time to process the latest report in a string of racially fuelled attacks. For the past week, I’ve been in my feelings and have struggled to express how I feel against various injustices. These injustices have destroyed individuals, families and communities over hundreds of years. George Floyd’s family is not my biological family, but I feel their pain and I truly hope that this tragic incident is the beginning of change.
Whist I have been privileged enough to not have experienced mainstream racism directly, I have family members and friends who have been ridiculed and attacked. Some older adults are still working through trauma of past experiences.
My experience is as follows:
· The feeling of needing to work twice as hard as my white counterparts to be recognised on the same level as them.
· People making assumptions about me e.g. where I live, my socio-economic background and my level of education.
· I’ve been labelled as the angry black woman/ bolshie, which although occurred years ago, still to this day makes me feel like I sometimes need to remain silent. If you actually know me, you would know that I’m passionate about moral right and wrong, but bolshie is not a word you would use to describe me. That statement would never be applied to a white male or female.
· The comment of: “You speak really well…you don’t speak like a black person” — I’m sorry, what should a black person sound like?
· I have questioned whether I have been hired for a job because of the need to hit a racial diversity quota rather than the skillset of my craft.
· I’ve had someone introduce themselves to me in another language, assuming that I would understand. I actually thought I was hearing incorrectly because I had no idea what he saying. When I told him, I didn’t understand, he told me he told me what he said meant welcome in Zulu. I’m black British, as are my parents and my grandparents originate from Jamaica. English is my first and only language.
I’m grateful to see support, willingness to donate to the cause and interest in learning about black culture. This movement has the power to change things and in order for change to occur, the movement has to come from more than just the black population, it has to come from the majority — from all communities, all colours and all people. It’s just a shame it has taken a modern-day lynching of a black man for that to be the case, when black culture, enjoyed by many, is prevalent throughout the world. Whilst I feel that it’s great that people have taken a step to move forward in the fight against racism, (particularly on social media) this is just one step of many in the complex nature of the battle we are fighting.
RACISM:
a) Prejudice, discrimination or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.
b) The belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior to another race.
In 1958, a black man named Clennon King applied for the University of Mississippi to read History. When he attended registration at the University he was met by state police, escorted to jail and declared insane and admitted to an asylum. The judge ruled that only insanity could make a black man think he could apply to university — This was only 62 years ago.
As a black female having attended and graduated from university, some could make the statement that times have changed. Have they? People still act as if skin colour is a determining factor to who you are and demonstrates the content of a person’s character, when in reality skin is translucent and the its colour is a reaction to sunlight. We are one human race, we all bleed the same blood, yet some of us have been hated, suppressed, enslaved, killed and deprived of basic human rights because of the colour of our skin.
The real fight in which we are all enlisted begins within homes and in heads. The real fight requires thought structure to be changed. The real fight is demonstrated in how we act in private as well as in public.
We have to change mentality — Regardless of what you have been taught, told or believe, there is no superior race, or group of people that are better or more worthy than another. We are all one, created equally and should be treated as such. Skin colour pays no bearing on the weight of a person’s character. This moment in history is an opportunity to learn and to change. It’s an opportunity to look at internal biases, have conversations about them, ask questions, listen, learn and understand. This process is gradual and isn’t going to happen overnight, but I ask for people to take the initiative for their own learning and move forward. Real change occurs over time.
We have to talk to the people we love — These conversations are pivotal to progress. Yes, they are uncomfortable and awkward, but sometimes we have to do hard things, and that means calling out friends when they don’t come correct. It means standing up to family members when they are consciously or unconsciously inappropriate. It means choosing to stand up for the right, even if it’s hard, especially if you have to stand alone. It’s not the responsibility of the people who have been targeted to have these conversations.
We have to challenge work environments — I’ve been in uncomfortable situations at work where people have been put forward on a television shows when they have outwardly spoken racial comments to members of the team and nothing has been done. I’ve also been in situations where there has been pressure to put forward black people who are not suitable in the name of needing diversity. That never would happen with an unsuitable person who was white, and to do this with any other complexion is an insult — Think about what this message sends out to the people working for you. Diversity within the TV industry continues to be a work in progress, but true diversity will never be able to exist whilst difficult conversations are avoided in relation to race.
Social media has been a powerful tool for us to visually see injustices occurring around the world. It has become ‘normal’ for minorities to be devalued and dehumanised in the way in they are treated. We have seen this in many cases over the last fifty years — This is not normal! Social media is now often used as proof of an offence or to document the unbelievable abhorrence which is dealt with on a daily basis. Laws are always just, but according to Socrates, a law can be unjustly used, they don’t protect everyone.
As we move into the future, conversations must continue. Some conversation will be painful and even volatile, others will be educational and joyous. Many conversations will uncomfortable. There are times when you will worry about saying the wrong thing, that your words are offensive, and you might be fearful of being taken the wrong way, but this is a shared opportunity to learn and mistakes will be made. It’s important for people seek to understand before pushing to be understood.
For the first time in years, it feels like many people understand the level of injustice that is occurring. People across the globe are accepting that racism is alive and kicking in many communities. This mass realisation has spurred many to make a stand and fight for what’s right, but let’s ensure that we ‘practice what we preach’ in order to truly progress and move forward.
