Jenn Howe

I was going to make a blog about my birthday, but I can’t do that now. I can’t write or think about anything trivial while this country is in such turmoil.

There are currently TWO deadly viruses wreaking havoc in America — one of them is Covid-19, the other is racism.

I can NOT believe that I still have to type such a sentence in the year 2020, or that I am STILL seeing new video footage of one person after another being harassed, abused, and/or murdered…simply because they are black.

For almost a week now, there have been protests and riots in streets all across the nation, and some of them are becoming violent.

A house built on a faulty foundation will not stand. Our country is tearing apart.

White people:

–Stop making excuses, and stop with all the “Yeah…but, but, but.” But nothing. Heinous acts of racism are being committed across this country, every single day. Stop pretending, burying your head, or calling them something other than what they are. They are racist acts and hate crimes, point blank period.

–Stop trying to explain YOUR point of view to black people. Believe it or not, it’s NOT ALWAYS ABOUT YOU (US). It’s been about us for CENTURIES, so chill the hell out. It’s time to turn our attention toward helping our African American citizens.

–Stop acting as if you understand what it’s like to be a black person living in America. You are NOT a black person living in America, therefore YOU HAVE NO FUCKING IDEA.

–Stop saying, “ALL Lives Matter!” as a rebuttal to “Black Lives Matter”. That’s like running into a hospital ward full of patients who are all dying of breast cancer, and screaming at them about how “ALL other kinds of cancer kill, too!” What the fuck’s wrong with you? You aren’t doing any good by stating something obvious-yet-unhelpful. Yes, every living being inherently has value, but the members of our black communities have been openly and repeatedly devalued for far too long, and they consistently face challenges that we, as white people, do not have to face. We often don’t even know what these challenges are, because our “whiteness” has completely shielded us from their existence.

—BE SILENT and LISTEN. Talk with as many people of color as you can. Ask about their lives, their struggles, their fears, their anger. Most of all, ask what they need and HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM. How can we protect them, lift them up, make reparations? They are protesting and rioting because THINGS STILL HAVEN’T CHANGED AND NO ONE WILL LISTEN. They are protesting and rioting because CENTURIES OF TRYING TO BE PEACEFUL DID NOT WORK. They are protesting and rioting because ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

ENOUGH, America.

ENOUGH, President.

ENOUGH.

Protect, honor, and hear our black brothers and sisters. Stand against hate and racism.

#BlackLivesMatter