I have such a heavy heart for all of the injustices and turmoil in the world right now. With this being said I find it more important than ever to educate, advocate, and do everything I can to stay positive while also being an ally.
An ally is someone who is not part of a specific marginalized group but has intentions to consistently help end oppression of this group.
The first steps to becoming an ally to me come with education. Personally I have researched, googled, and asked questions when I need to. Educating ourselves should go hand in hand with brushing up on historical facts as well. Before I give my opinion or start any conversations on why what is currently happening could even be fathomable, I remember that these oppressions are not new there is a long long background.
Bring up children the right way. Believe it or not the environment at home towards race impacts the attitudes and thought processes kids will develop for the rest of their lives. By age five children begin to pick up the racial attitudes that adults in their culture hold. This means that as early as kindergarten age kids learn to associate some groups with higher status than others.
Acknowledge your privilege. Don’t ignore things because they make you uncomfortable, and have the hard conversations that are necessary. White privilege doesn’t mean that you have not had a hard life, it just means the your skin tone has not made it even harder.
Know when to stay silent. This is not about me or my experience. I don’t need to be commenting on every situation or give my perspective for every scenario and find it way more proactive to uplift others instead and let them have a voice for change.
Remember that your behavior is entirely up to you and you can’t change other people, but you can set a good example and encourage change by listening, empathizing and offering help. Another good way to encourage change is to notice and celebrate small changes as well as asking good thought provoking questions.
