Even though racism is constant reality throughout American history, no school curriculum exists to teach white people how to be allies to the Black community. Far too late, white people are learning to take the steps necessary to wield privilege for change and justice.
We have so many tools at our disposal: workshops, organizations accepting donations, and more. Both YouTube and Instagram have become yet another place to seek information in the form of videos about how to promote racial justice, so you can translate what you learn into actions that truly move the needle.
These videos about racial justice are essential viewing
1. Brandon Kyle Goodman: ‘To my White Friends’
“It is not my responsibility or the responsibility of any Black person to inform you, educate you, or teach you how to be an ally,” says Brandon Kyle Goodman. “This thing that we’re experiencing has been going on for 401 years. As you can imagine, there are a large amount of resources, materials, and information about our experiences, and also about racism, and about racist tendencies, and about white fragility.”
Goodman tells his listeners that what Black people experience on a daily basis goes beyond pain; beyond fear. There’s no word in the English language that accurately takes the pulse of his experience—and understanding that can help white people do better.
2. Danielle Prescod: ‘SHOW me you care instead of telling me.’
“White women, fix it. Fix yourselves. Realize that your microaggressions are the problem. Talk to your children. Find them some Black friends. Show me you care instead of telling me. I am hoarse from screaming. We have been telling you guys this for years. Years. I’m glad you decided to wake up but now get out of bed and do something,” writes Danielle Prescod in her Instagram post. The work isn’t done just because white people now recognize inequality. The work starts when we see instances of inequality and actively call them out.
3. Maggie Anderson: ‘My black year’
Long ago, author Maggie Anderson and her family did an experiment: For a year, they relied on Black businesses, professionals, and products for every part of their lives. In her TED Talk, Anderson explains how many of these businesses closed their doors shortly after her experiment because of economic inequalities that target Black neighborhoods across America.
4. Chrissy rutherford: ‘It’s not enough to just say: I’m not a racist.’
“If you’re co-opting Black trends, but not speaking out about our oppression, that shit just doesn’t fly. And honestly, we see that and we take note of that,” says Chrissy Rutherford, speaking directly to white people who aren’t using their social media platforms (no matter how big or small) for anti-racist actions.
5. David R. Williams, PhD: ‘How racism makes us sick’
“America has recently been awakened to a steady drumbeat of unarmed Black men being shot by the police. What is even a bigger story is that, every seven minutes, a Black person dies prematurely in the United States. That is over 200 Black people who die every single day, who would not die if the health of Blacks and Whites were equal,” says Dr. Williams. In this video, he sets out to explain why there’s a major racial component of who gets to live, and who is made to die.
6. Malcolm x: ‘If you stick a knife in my back nine inches and pull it out six inches, there’s no progress.’
Human rights activist Malcolm X’s famous line from an interview taped in 1964 still rings true today. When asked by a reporter “Are we making [racial] progress?” he replied “If you stick a knife in my back nine inches and pull it out six inches, there’s no progress. If you pull it all the way out, that’s not progress. Progress is healing the wound that the blow made. And they haven’t even pulled the knife out, much less heal the wound.”
7. Yvette Nicole Brown: ‘We’re tired of talking.’
In a recent interview with a local Los Angeles news station, Brown criticizes an LAPD police officer for complaining on-air that he got hit by a brick when Black people across America are dying. “He centered himself in the middle of what we are going through… Everyone knows what is happening; there’s no mystery,” says Brown.
8. Megan ming Francis, PHD: ‘Let’s get to the root of racial injustice’
In this video, Dr. Francis of the University of Washington’s political science department, argues that it’s impossible to fight racism without looking where it comes from. “The question on everyone’s mind and the question I get asked the most is: ‘How do we solve this problem?’ I confess I cringe at this question, not because it’s not a good question, but because I think we’re asking the wrong question. I’m not convinced we even understand how we got here,” she says.
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