How to Be An Ally of Racial Justice

Following the killing of George Floyd, massive protests have gripped the nation. This uprising has elevated the message "Black Lives Matter," sparked national conversations about systemic racial injustice, and energized people to seek sweeping reforms. As we roll up our sleeves and get to work, it’s important to examine the roots of systemic racism: White supremacy.

Particularly if your skin is white, you may wonder, “How can this be? I’m totally against white supremacy. Our country recently elected a black president.”

I extend my compassion to you. As a white person who has always believed in racial justice and equality, I too have been confused, and blind. Together, let’s open our eyes and see more clearly. For starters, here are four concepts, based on the work of current leaders who've gone viral, Layla Saad, author of "Me and White Supremacy" and Ibram Kendi, author of "How to Be An Antiracist." Understanding these concepts and becoming familiar with their work can help you contribute to positive change.

We live in a country founded on white supremacy. When the framers of the constitution wrote "all men are created equal," they were actually referring to white men as being equal to any king. Indeed, only white male landowners were granted the right to vote for their democratic leaders. And the enslavement of black people was legal. That adds up to a foundation of white supremacy. It's time we trained our focus on black lives, precisely because we still live in a society that tends to ignore, dismiss, and destroy black lives. To this day, our systems—including health care, education, housing, economics, voting, environmental protection, and criminal justice systems—are all still stacked against black lives, perpetuating injustice, inequality, and inequity, in fact, for all people of color.

White supremacy is largely invisible to us white people. We don't see it, partly because we aren't bearing the brunt of its injustice and oppression; partly because we haven't been willing to carefully listen to people of color describe what it's like for them; and partly because we haven't objectively examined the pervasiveness of white supremacy in our society. Instead, we're raised to believe that this is the land of equal opportunity and that everyone has the bootstraps to pull themselves up. We're raised to believe that slavery was abolished, and with it, oppression, and that it's time to "move on." Of course, when confronted by, "Black Lives Matter," we may counter with, "All Lives Matter." And we believe we're modeling all-inclusiveness and encouraging forward movement. Unfortunately, what we're really doing is ignoring a system that is perpetually stuck in a state of exclusion. We're ignoring the pervasive inequities and injustices, and the inferior bootstraps made available to people of color, all of which hold them back. Maybe we white people have moved on, but our society paves our way while imposing barriers for people of color.

White supremacy grants us white people "white privilege." But what if you've had a rough, tough life? Perhaps you see no privilege, no paving of your way. Still, you hold many privileges that come from simply having "white" skin. To see your privilege, consider:

As a white person:

• You don't walk around under a cloud of suspicion, with people unfairly, unjustly, and even unconsciously associating your skin color with "being up to no good."
• You don't ever get pulled over for "driving while black."
• You don't have "the talk" with your children, telling them to be polite and subservient around white people to avoid involvement with law enforcement.
• You don't hesitate to call 911 in an emergency, worried you could be shot by police who might assume you're a perp.
• You don't see people like you routinely arrested, imprisoned, and sometimes killed for minor offenses, or even for imagined offenses.

This list represents just a tiny fraction of the privileges that you are granted because of your white skin. In contrast, people of color consistently feel unsafe, disrespected, and unfairly treated.

White supremacy conditions us to unknowingly reinforce it. For one thing, if you’re white, it grants you “white privilege,” which keeps you content with the status quo. And that’s why you might resist or feel nervous about "Black Lives Matter." Particularly around police brutality, you may counter with, "Blue lives matter," to honor all the cops who do a decent job of "protect and serve." Or perhaps you reflexively counter with "all lives matter," thinking that's the moral high ground. Maybe you're hoping to quell the protests by pleading "let's just all get along." Unfortunately, these counter sayings are actually blurring or distracting the focus on Black Lives Matter. You're dismissing terrible anguish with your calls for peace. And your blurring, distracting, and dismissing serve to perpetuate white supremacy. Even if this is never your intent, white supremacy wins again.

As you learn to see systemic racism more clearly, you may feel horrified, guilty, or hopeless. But there is a way out: As we raise awareness of white supremacy and how it expresses itself through us, we can overpower its influence and truly be the change we want to see in the world.

To learn more, I invite you to explore the references below.