I don’t consider this a political blog – I might mention fairly frequently how much I loathe our bag-of-assholes-in-chief and his talking block of moldy cream cheese VP, but I’m not here to provide insightful commentary. I feel like there are so many people who do it better than I could, and honestly, if I think about the world too much right now my already-wavering mental health will go kablooey.
There’s also the fact that right now, the world doesn’t need to listen to me, it needs to listen to Black people. As a white person (who has been ashamed of her people her whole adult life) I don’t want to talk over the people who are actually suffering. My voice is not one that needs to be heard on this subject.
However.
I do want to express my solidarity with, and my profound apology to, to the Black community of America. I am sorry we created this system that was founded on the idea you aren’t fully human. I’m sorry your sons and daughters are being murdered by people who in theory are there to protect them. I’m sorry this country can outfit its police with military assault weapons but won’t bother to get PPE to its doctors. I saw a Tweet yesterday where a Black man’s little boy asked “Are we going back to being slaves?” and I honestly wept.
I support your outrage and your protests. For whatever it’s worth this white woman is 100% with you in your anger and grief.
I am with you, even if I don’t hold up a sign and march. Big crowds terrify me and I don’t have the physical stamina to be of much use out there. I have donated to bail funds and signed petitions and am continuing to educate myself while trying to lift up Black voices whenever I can; that’s what I can offer you right now, and it feels woefully inadequate given the magnitude of horror pressing down on you from all sides.
Black men have been some of the kindest men I’ve ever met. Black women are goddamn magnificent. Black children are beautiful. And all of you are worthy of respect and care and deserve so much better than this utter mess of a country we’ve built on your backs. We have failed you in every way possible through our inaction as much as our action. I hope this is the beginning of white people holding themselves to a much higher standard, though to be honest I don’t have a lot of faith in us right now.
I’m so sorry this is where we are. I hope where we’re going is better, and I want to help get us there if I can.
Black lives matter.
Black lives matter.
Black lives matter.
Amen.