Virtue Signalling Vs. Collective Outcry
Once again, 2020 serves us up a dumpster fire of epic proportions. The death ( *murder*) of George Floyd seems to have been the heartbreaking straw that broke the camels back. Riots, protests, looting, police stations on fire - it sure makes for a bleak Facebook feed. I'm not going to make this a big post today, because someone told me this week that the great rule of ally-ship is to say "Nothing about me without me." But I do want to say this:
There is a difference between virtue signaling and collective outcry. Now is not the moment to look at someone's Facebook page and accuse them of virtue signaling - of simply wanting to look like they care enough. When this type of systemic racism is called out, when injustice reaches a tipping point, we can feel powerless, angry, and confused. We can try to tune it out, try to be in denial, we can be triggered, we can stick our heads in the sand because it is all too hard and too far out of our control.
So some people fire off a Facebook post. It's the best they can do. It's not virtue signaling. It's just the best we can do given the information we can. Don't attack them. The fact is when we witness trauma, we can be traumatized too. And powerlessness is a common reaction to trauma. It's not a moment to argue with someone about their content, intent, or right to post. They're doing the best they can - processing a moment in history that is hard, so very hard, to witness.
But when injustice reaches a tipping point like it has this week, it is important to raise our voices - to join the collective outcry and call for change. So the big question remains, how can we do this constructively?
"Nothing About Me Without Me"
Like I said, someone told me this week that the great guidepost of allyship is to say "nothing about me without me." So whether it is feminism, LGBTQIA+ rights, or in this case systemic and horrific racism, it's a moment to pass the microphone. All week, I've been retweeting or reposting content from People of Color, both in Australia and abroad (because my goodness, Australia has its own atrocities - 400 indigenous deaths in custody in the last 12 years and not one charge laid. A considerable gap between indigenous Australians and other Australians in terms of educational outcomes and other wellbeing measures. We need to do better. Now should be a call to action to improve the situation for our own first people).
I got schooled this week in terms of allyship. And I'm thankful for the lesson. Perhaps it's timely, though, because I now see the importance of finding those voices who speak out against injustice from a place of personal experience. Find those people, and offer them a megaphone. Share their messages.
If it helps, I've been watching these, among others:
Kevin Garcia has been featuring a lot of key messages from people of color, and is also a person of color.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been posting some great content on her twitter feed.
Bernice King, the daughter of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. has been posting some amazing stuff, and keeping the torch lit up.
I've also been keeping an eye on content from Stan Grant, The Age, and other reputable sources who have been adding to the information by shining light on the Australian situation.
Add Your Voice Where It Counts
It can be hard to do anything from where you sit, and even in the USA it can be hard to do anything if you don't feel safe going to a protest. But there are petitions you can sign, associations you can join, foundations you can donate too. Whenever there is a cause, there is generally a lobby group pushing for the betterment of that cause.
Change.org is generally a good place to start, or you can Google the foundations dedicated to the cause in your country.
We aren't as powerless as we seem. We should hope for, dream of, and push for a better tomorrow. It is certainly, absolutely, a good thing to acknowledge our own white privilege while we stand with those like George Floyd, and every person of color who fears for their safety because of the injustice of racism.
Now is Not The Moment for "All Lives Matter."
Yes, I've seen that counterclaim float its way around Facebook in response to the "Black Lives Matter" movement. Yes, all lives matter. But we whities - well our house isn't on fire. So let's not get in the way of the fire-engines or steal their resources. Let's grab our buckets and our hoses, and whatever we can do to help douse this inferno. Precious lives hang in the balance.
Just my two cents. For whatever they're worth.
Racism in Australia - a Lived Experience
As protests circle the globe following the horrific deaths of George Floyd, Tony McDade and Breonna Taylor (the latter two to whom I pay homage because they matter so much, even though it seems to be George's murder that has raised the global pot to boiling point), I've wanted to pass the microphone where I can - so that we can hear voices that matter. I'm about to share a story I saw on Instagram. It was shared by a friend of mine who is educated, intelligent, sophisticated, traffic-stoppingly gorgeous and brown. She is a mother of four mixed-race babies, to whom she gives her heart and soul every day. I am in awe of this woman.
When she posted her own experience of racism in Australia, a move done with much trepidation as its not usually something she speaks about, I had to reshare it (with permission of course).
But before I do, I must quote our esteemed PM, Scott Morrison, who said in an interview on Monday that "There's no need to import things happening in other countries here to Australia." He was referring to the Black Lives Matter protests. It is a triggering time for many Australians, as we have had more than 400 indigenous deaths in custody since 1991. One of them," David Dungay, said "I can't breathe" 12 times while being restrained by prison guards in 2015. He died, and the video of Floyd’s killing has been traumatic for his family. [1]" None of the officers have faced consequences.
I raise it to say this isn't an overseas problem.
And now, on to Laura's story - reposted with permission.
Muted posts are easy. Anti-Racism work is not. Do the latter.
"I'm about to talk about racism, and the Black Lives Matter movement. I rarely use this space for anything other than our homeschool journey, but I believe the current situation warrants a conversation. If you'd like to pass over this post, feel free to do so.
I'm brown. I'm equal parts Anglo-Indian, Scottish, Welsh, and Polish, but my skin colour is brown, and when I'm asked what nationality I am, what people mean is "What part of your heritage makes you brown?", so I just say I'm Anglo-Indian. My husband is white. Our children are bi-racial, two are white, two are olive. Racism is no stranger.
I was born and raised in Australia, and I have dealt with racism since childhood. As a kid, there were slurs, outright hostility, and violence. I remember a kid at my school following me on my way home, hitting at my calves with a garden stake. I remember my concerned Dad teaching me how to defend myself physically when I was seven, knowing I would probably face other similar incidents. I remember punch-ons, and teachers who turned a blind eye when I defended myself, as they knew they couldn't always be there to intervene. I remember stories from my parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents, of the insane levels of racism they had faced. My grandfather (Scottish) married my grandmother (Indian) and was disowned for it. His own mother refused to help my grandparents care for their starving children, because their kids were mixed race.
As an adult, the racism I have encountered most often is of a more subtle nature; generalisations of my work ethic based on race, on the number of my children I have based on race, of my talents based on race, of intelligence, of hygiene, of parenting... and the occasional bout of outright hostility.
My kids haven't had many of such experience (yay for homeschool!) but the thought that they might both breaks my heart and kindles my anger. The awareness that there are children who are dealing with this... the awareness that George Floyd was someone's son and he cried out for his mum, the injustice of it all... it just makes me burn.
How is it that we are still having to defend a belief that people are people?!?! How is it that a Black Lives Matter movement is being diminished by responses of "all lives matter"? Of course they do! But Black Lives Matter is the burning issue, and pointing out that your life matters too does nothing to extinguish those flames! It is not helpful. Posting a black tile doesn't make you an ally.
Muting yourself doesn't make you an ally - and frankly, how utterly ridiculous to think that you should be silent because you're white. Instead, listen, and then use your voice and your privilege to support change. Share posts from black content creators, and from black platforms. Silence around racism has not saved anyone yet, but it sure as hell has enabled it to continue.
Lovely people, if we want to change, then we need to do the work. Ask questions of yourself and of others. Please don't mute yourself - learn, and listen, and then speak. Being Anti-Racism is not a something that we can achieve, as such; it's an ongoing journey, learning to challenge racism in ourselves and to grow in love as we do. I hope you'll grow with me.
xxx."
Laura Grimmond
Thank you beautiful lady for sharing your voice. Thank you for letting me honour it with a reshare.
Kit K