The first night of the protests that started after George Floyd's murder by a Minneapolis police officer had my mind racing. I was reading and listening to news reports on and off, and have been for nearly two weeks now. I have been online way too much than is good for me, but I can't stop reading because I am learning so much. In such a short amount of time, I've learned all about some of the systems that protect the police, what happens when the social contract is up, and that moment of realization that I'm someone to fear, and most importantly, what it looks like to be(come) anti-racist.
I know I am learning so much about racism just in the last two weeks alone, and here I thought I was someone who 'knew'. Dang, I was so wrong. So misinformed. So clueless and ignorant--still am. I am committed to learning more, speaking out when appropriate, and shutting up when appropriate. The only way I can try to help in the immediate time period, is to offer up books and other media that have helped me over many years, come to understand racism against people of color. I think it's important to read books from diverse authors to my kids, and also to learn about as much history as we can about any people group, but I have often erred on the side of Black people, and Indigenous people. (You can take an implicit bias test here.)
I'm not going to lie-even writing this series (8 parts!) just on books and media feels a bit gross to me; like I'm trying to be 'an A+ ally' (can't remember where I heard that term but YES). I get pretty uncomfortable with any attention on myself and I always have. So, please don't misconstrue these blog posts as 'look at me, I'm doing the right thing, reading the right people, and am fully woke'. Nut-uh. Not even a little bit. I'm sick to my stomach about my ignorance and you will never, not ever, see who I've put charitable dollars toward. I rarely even take selfies. I'm trying to say, I sincerely don't want to take part in 'tokenism'. I will continue to teach my kids these things, like I always have after reading Nurture Shock (you can read an excerpt on their race chapter HERE) and the science they wrote about behind how racism transfers from parents to children. Now it's time to help others who are confused, possibly angry over the riots, or overwhelmed with the amount of information coming out right now, and keep learning myself. I'd just rather talk face to face than blasting something out for everyone to see, but now I feel compelled to do both.
I view the Black Lives Matter movement as PRO-LIFE. I always have. I don't condone violence of any kind (including the death penalty) but I know and understand why the riots are happening. The human spirit can only handle so much.
Gun laws have become so normalized and extravagant in the US that regular citizens feel they can play God because of a fake sense of power they hold on to and use to kill unarmed people. PRO-LIFE confirms the dignity of all life, and unfortunately it has mostly come to mean against abortion and euthanasia while turning a blind eye to systemic racism, cyclical poverty, and educational failures. I am against the death penalty because I am pro-life. I am against discriminatory policies in education and gun violence because I am pro-life. I am pro-life, because my Christian faith compels me to acknowledge the dignity of every human, because he or she is made in God's image. I am here for more learning, apologizing, and reconciliation, and forward movement.
So-what can I offer to this conversation? Just good books, media, and art to engage with that can hopefully help someone, like they've helped me, and helped me help my kids understand, too.
Tomorrow, I'll start my first post with non-fiction recommendations; stay tuned.
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