IMG_5742 2.jpg

Hi!

Welcome to The Ellery! 

To My Non-Black Friends

To My Non-Black Friends

Danielle Duval

I know you’ve seen it on the news, posted on social media, listened to it on your podcasts and read about it in your daily newsletter. You’ve been urged to reach out and check in on your black friends and that is what brought you here. While well-meaning, having these conversations is exhausting and takes away from the rest and healing black people need right now. Having this conversation once is exhausting so I’ve compiled the answers to all of your questions so black people can get back to healing themselves and their community.

Flag flown from the NAACP Headquarters in New York, 1936

Flag flown from the NAACP Headquarters in New York, 1936

A man was lynched yesterday. No matter what day this post goes live, this statement will be true. Actually, in the time it took me to write this post, another man was killed. But I know you’re reaching out because of what’s been in the news ‘lately’. George Floyd, a 46 year old father went out to the store and never came back. He was lynched by 3 Minneapolis police officers while a 4th watched, for ‘matching’ a description of a man who may have used a fake $20 bill. Words are incredibly powerful, so know that this is not a hyperbolic word choice.

Lynching: the extrajudicial killing by a group, conducted publicly for maximum intimidation and to assert social control. Extrajudicial, without a judicial proceeding or legal process.

Group, the Minneapolis Police Department, specifically Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, Tou Thau, and Alexander Kueng. Publicly, the video of George Floyd’s assault, murder, and dead body is constant and unavoidable. If lynching sounds old school to you, it is because you first learned about it in the context of the Reconstruction Era after the Civil War. But it is and continues to be our present reality, despite lynching finally becoming a federal crime in 2020.

Now that you have context, let’s talk!

“How are you? I know things have been so crazy lately”

I’m terrible. I’m angry and I’m exhausted. And this isn’t lately, this is every day, this is always. Unsurprisingly, watching the murder of someone who looks like you soul killing and can cause PTSD. But thanks for asking.

“That’s horrible! I can’t believe this is happening, I’m ashamed to be American”

I agree, it is horrible! Can’t believe it? Well I sure can. It’s as American as Apple Pie. I can’t cook but I think I got the recipe down. Ingredients: Police brutality is recorded and goes viral. Next we learn the name of the victim and every mistake they’ve ever made (I mean they must have done something to deserve it right?). Now #JusticeFor(fill in today’s victim here) is trending on twitter. Next we finally learn the name of the criminal. For extra spice, use their professional portrait instead of a mugshot, because they haven’t been arrested yet. Let sit until you hear ‘all lives matter’ or ‘blue lives matter’ or ‘they shouldn’t have resisted’. There’s more to the recipe but we usually don’t get too much further before we start again so I wont go into too much detail. Basically they keep their job, get fired and rehired, or get charged and acquitted.

“My heart goes out to communities of color”

Don’t be afraid to use the b-word. The Black community. Using ‘communities or people of color’ erases the black experience, erases the violence and the abuse black people have experienced for long than the United States has been a country.

“But don’t all lives matter?”

Yes, of course all lives matter! I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who didn’t agree. But when you have to beg for justice to be served when your community is murdered for simply selling cds or cigarettes, walking home, sleeping, running, wearing a hoodie you can imagine why we’ve come up with the reminder that BLACK LIVES MATTER.

“I’m so sorry about all this. I’m happy to take something off your plate if you don’t think you can handle work right now.”

Thanks, I will take you up on that because I need to take time to focus on my mental health so I can be there for my community. But know that if I took the time away from work to really feel and deal with this trauma, I wouldn’t have worked a day in my life. I just witnessed the lynching of a black man, but don’t worry Ted, I’ll have those deliverables to you by the end of the day.

“Why can’t they protest peacefully? How does rioting help?”

Words matter. Why are these riots and these protests? Who was it who decided that we were rioting? Like said before, words matter. And we have been protesting peacefully, so peacefully in fact, that you may have forgotten. That wasn’t received well either. And how does rioting help? Well so far its gotten us ‘our’ independence, the 8-hour workday, civil rights, LGBTQ+ Rights.

“MLK wouldn’t have wanted this!”

…Are you sure? Martin Luther King Jr. is well known for his non-violent tactics but he did say that ‘riots are the language of the unheard'. There are people who are accusing Martin Luther King III (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s son) for twisting Dr. King’s in support of the protests. While I’m going to err on the side of the person who knew Dr. King personally, for some this argument can’t be settled. Because as dedicated to non-violence as he was, Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.

“But what can I DO”

Ah, finally-I’m glad you asked! Be actively anti-racist. Pull up. Do the work. Don’t rely on black people to educate you. Call out racism everywhere you are. Talk to your racist uncle, talk to your police officer father, talk to your younger sister who wears black culture like an accessory. Don’t center yourself or your feelings in this fight. Do your homework. Use your privilege as a platform. Amplify black voices. Fund the fight. Be ready to learn and unlearn, every day. Use these resources, spread these resources, be an ally in real life. And don’t forget to LISTEN TO BLACK PEOPLE!

Resources

As compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker, Alyssa Klein in May 2020

For white parents to raise anti-racist children:

Articles to read:

Videos to watch:

Podcasts to subscribe to:

Books to read:

Films and TV series to watch:

  • 13th (Ava DuVernay) — Netflix

  • American Son (Kenny Leon) — Netflix

  • Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975 — Available to rent

  • Clemency (Chinonye Chukwu) — Available to rent

  • Dear White People (Justin Simien) — Netflix

  • Fruitvale Station (Ryan Coogler) — Available to rent

  • I Am Not Your Negro (James Baldwin doc) — Available to rent or on Kanopy

  • If Beale Street Could Talk (Barry Jenkins) — Hulu

  • Just Mercy (Destin Daniel Cretton) — Available to rent

  • King In The Wilderness  — HBO

  • See You Yesterday (Stefon Bristol) — Netflix

  • Selma (Ava DuVernay) — Available to rent

  • The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution — Available to rent

  • The Hate U Give (George Tillman Jr.) — Hulu with Cinemax

  • When They See Us (Ava DuVernay) — Netflix

Organizations to follow on social media:

More anti-racism resources to check out:

Self Care in the Time of Revolution (& Pandemic)

Self Care in the Time of Revolution (& Pandemic)

How to Create a WFH Schedule

How to Create a WFH Schedule
0