I can no longer be silent. I want- no need- to tell my story.
I have sat and thought (and prayed) over the last several
days, hell years, about what to say and how I could help without appearing to
be a white savior.
My story begins when I was in high school. The people I grew
up with came from all different races and backgrounds. Klein Forest was 33% Hispanic,
33% Black, 21% White, 12% Asian, <1 % American Indian. Out of necessity, we were
taught to get along and to embrace each other for who we are, and yes that included
what we looked like. I am thankful every day that my parents chose to leave me at
KF and not transfer me out to another school. I learned how to love someone for
who they are and to embrace their culture as valid.
College was a cultural shock for me. Not because I left home,
and that was also a shock, but because TAMUG was not diverse. Let’s face it. The
effort was there but nothing really came of it. Galveston is a diverse city
with wonderful people who make the Island unique, but TAMUG is majority white.
However, I did meet people who taught me the importance of advocating and
standing up for what was right. Many of these people are still at TAMUG and making
a difference in the world around them. I truly believe that if you have a staff
of people who care about social justice, then the students will start to care,
and I believe this because I saw it happen!
After college, I continued to learn and grow into my beliefs.
I adapted and became a better person because of the diversity around me. It
went beyond tolerance and started to include acceptance and love. Deep-seated
mistrust and misunderstanding needed to be broken down, but I believe I am on
my way.
My time in the
convent exposed me to people from all over the world (I tried to come up with another
way to say this so it didn’t sound like I was in prison because that is not
what it was, but this was the best I could do). I learned more about our
differences with other nations and continents. I was afraid to travel to Vietnam
because I was afraid that they would hate me as an American. That they would
judge me before they got to know me. They,
of course, didn’t hate me and embraced me. I learned to not fear and to listen
to the experiences of others.
In the postulancy, I learned from my sisters from African Countries
and how they differ from each other and how each culture could bring so much enrichment
to my life. I learned how words could really cause pain and hurt. I learned
that when you truly live interculturally you become a better person; the person
God intended us to be. I learned that Human dignity and respect is the most
important thing a person has and can give. I will eventually share my story of
a man that taught me to look past appearances and see God in everyone, but for
now, I want to keep that close to my heart.
I have reflected a lot on that time in St. Louis over the
past week. St. Louis and the surrounding area was ground 0 for the start of the
Black Lives Matter movement. We all know the story and all have our opinions on
the movement. Nightly I would see news stories and see the racism in action. I
felt helpless and unable/unaware of how to help.
I am here to take a stand. No matter those beliefs, it is
time that you stand with our Black brothers and sisters who are suffering. The
whole idea of I do not see color is absurd. Of course, you see it and you MUST embrace
it. If it is hard to do that’s okay.
As a straight, white, cis-woman, I need to acknowledge that
while I have struggled at times in life, it was not because of the color of my
skin or who I love. I was not prevented from joining an organization or got passed
up for a job because of what I looked like. My merits stood on their own at face
value. My struggles as a woman have been significant, but I cannot begin to
feel what my black sisters feel when they experience prejudice. I am not afraid
to talk to law enforcement if I get pulled over. My parents have never had to
warn and coach me how to interact with police, for fear that if I say something,
they don’t like I will be taken to jail, or worse killed. The cold hard truth
is, I am privileged and seen as better than others. I am the right color, the
right sexual orientation, and gender normal. This means I get all the rights
afforded to me. But, my sisters and brothers of color do not. My sisters and
brothers who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community do not. We MUST take a stand.
I am appalled by all those claiming to be Christian and who
are also racist. Racism is based, at its root in fear, but now we are going so
beyond fear. We are going to pure evil. If you can kneel on a man's neck while
you feel his life leave his body and not stop, you are evil. If you see a man running
down the street and hunt him down and shoot him because he looks like a thug-
you are evil! If you break into a woman’s home and kill her because you think
she doesn’t live there, despite all the evidence otherwise, you are evil!
I am asking, no begging you through teary eyes, please wake
up white America. Show the world we are better than this. Take a stand on the
right side! Don’t be the people our children and their children see in history
as the bad. Remember when you looked in history books and saw the pictures of
the people dressed in white hoods? Do you remember the shame you felt for your race?
Maybe that’s the problem. Maybe you didn’t feel that shame. I did. I am a white
woman from the south and carry that history in my being. I am not saying my
family wore the white robes and burned churches and homes because I don’t believe
that they did, but it is part of my history and the legacy I inherited, by
being born here and I need to own that.
Maybe you are afraid of supporting BLM because you feel that
you cannot support the police if you do. Well, please know that I support BLM
and our police. I have family and friends in law enforcement who are great
people and who stand up for injustice. I support them and pray for their safety
every day. What supporting BLM does mean is that I support rampant and radical
police reform. I support cultural sensitivity training for all officers and
their leadership, and that this training doesn’t just happen one time, but is continuously
renewed and updated. I support community policing where the officers that
police a neighborhood are from that neighborhood. I support the use of body cameras and an external
review of all excessive force complaints. I support the use of bias training
for all members of the force.
So yes, all lives matter, but right now we need to help a
specific group. We need to recognize that saying Black Lives Matter, is saying
that all lives matter. We need to be the Christian nation we claim to be. We
need to embrace the fact that, whether it was intended by our founders (it wasn’t),
ALL men AND women are created equal. It is written in our guiding documents and
is what we should strive for. Please be better.
I also feel that I need to comment on the riots. I wasn't going to but I feel that if I don't, I will be called out so here we go. Riots are usually the last resort. When people are at the end of their rope and feel that nothing else is working, they do what they feel is all they have left and resort to violence. People are rioting in the streets because they feel we are not listening to them. And they are right. Many have tried for YEARS to peaceably protest and they have not been heard. It is time to listen.
Do you want to help and don’t know how? Here are some tips:
- Call your national/state/and local representatives. Lobby for what you want. You are the voter and you carry the power.
- VOTE! Your voice counts. Not just for president, but for everyone. Especially Sheriff!
- Don’t agree with something you see. Don’t be silent. Call the person out. Sometimes people don’t realize the impact their words are having. (Just remember your words impact as well)
- March. Join in with our black and brown brothers and sisters out on the streets.
- Talk to your children. Hate is taught. So is love. Teach love. Teach kindness. It is never too early to talk to your kids about racism. There are wonderful resources out there for kids of all ages.
- Donate to programs that service POC and help to bring equality to all here in America.
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