“Miserable is exactly how the white people who want to help should be feeling right now, and then they should sit with that misery until something breaks in their brain, the narrative changes in their psyche, and the legacy of emotional paralysis lifts entirely.”
Hello,
this is issue 002 of 9 Ambitions. Actually, it’s 002b. There was another draft with various topics, but I scrapped it and started again. Because I need to talk about racism. And it didn’t felt right to mix that with other matters.
When I read the news about the killing of George Floyd, I filed it away as another tragic event. When I saw the images of the ongoing protests and the responses to it, I looked upon it as a mounting political crisis.
Then one evening I watched Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, which ends with a (abridged) segment of a black woman in the street yelling at the camera with such anger, desperation and power that “something in my brain broke”. She said nothing new to me. But the way she delivered it threw me off guard.
After a few moments, when I could think straight again, the first thing that popped into my mind was “What do I actually know about racism?”.
Turns out, not much. Sure, when I was in the US, I visited museums or exhibitions about the history of slavery. In Canada I learned about First Nations and colonialism. And as a German, I know a few things about the Nazi’s “Rassenlehre”. But those are just historical facts.
I turned to my book shelf. What did I read about racism? Besides this and that book, which partly touch the subject, there was only one that really qualified: “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates, elegantly written as a letter to his 15yr old son. It’s been more than 3 years since I read it, but I remember that it made quite an impression on me. The book gives you a glimpse of what it might feel like to be an African American in the 21st century. But it’s not addressed at white people (at least not ostensibly) and Coates also offers no solution. Maybe it was that mix of forlornness and the feeling of being “outside” of it that made me not follow up on it.
But of course there is no outside when it comes to racism. This is something I became aware in the last days. “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo helped me see that. This book, as the title suggests, is aimed at white people, especially those who like to think of themselves as progressive. I’m only half way in, but it already provided me with a new lens on how to look at this extremely complex problem. I really recommend picking up a copy and read it with an open mind.
For those who haven’t thought much about (anti-)racism, like myself, here are a few resources you might want to check out. Get educated, have some uncomfortable conversions with yourself, with your friends and listen to what people who are experiencing racism are trying to tell you.
Read
Books to help you understand & fight white supremacy
Another list of book recommendations
And one for the next generation of anti-racists
I’m looking for some good German books on this topic. Any tips?
More to talk about with your kids
Can someone please make a German version of the whole series?
Watch
13th
A documentary about racial inequality. Free on YouTube or with your Netflix subscription
White Fragility Lecture with Dr. Robin DiAngelo
A talk by the author of the book I mentioned above.
Until next month,
Johannes