An Invitation to Anti-Racist Solidarity

Having poured myself into writing three pieces over the last five days, I considered taking a break. Glancing through a social media platform, a post caught my attention. The poster, a woman in a white body, was calling other people in white bodies to task for denying racism. More on her post later.

There are very few people in white bodies who vociferously objected to racial integration in the 1960s who are still living. As a young child, the hate and belligerence created a shameful performance of ignorant and misguided people declaring their entitlement and superiority as the parents of children who looked like me wanted more for their children. The protesters took pride in their indignance, hatred and racism towards people in Black bodies. Claiming whiteness as their primary identity immersed them into a world of lies that distorted their capacity to reason, question or think critically. The world of whiteness has given its lies authority over the teachings of their espoused faith traditions.

Viewing them from the safety of my family’s black and white television at home, their emotions were visceral. Do their descendants recognize them in film footage and chagrin with shame at the behavior? Maybe, I am too hopeful. I wonder the same about the descendants of those who participated in or celebrated lynchings. What happens when you recognize an ancestor smiling at the corpse of a person who was lynched?

These protests are not as frequent now as they were 60 years, but the racism and white supremacy that fueled them continue to thrive in the hearts and minds of many people, including some whom I know. They have shapeshifted as they did after chattel slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, World War II and the Civil Rights Movement. They seem to simmer until we as a society begin to witness our influences on the moral arc of the universe bending towards justice. In response, the simmering hate erupts like a volcano destroying all in its path. The most recent eruption is in response to the election and re-election of President Barack Obama. The world has a front row seat to the self-destruction of our democracy by enemies within.

The racism and white supremacy of today may not be reflected in separate water fountains, separate entrances, or the refusal of service but they have been protected systematically in less obvious ways resulting in a range of disparities along racial lines. Some may prefer not to self-identify as racist but they swaddle themselves in the illusion of whiteness with no understanding of its meaning. They carry a sense of entitled privilege because of their white bodies. 

There are also individuals who are blatantly and intentionally racist. They are cunning and cruel in their actions. I was reminded of this tonight as I scanned social media and learned of Lilly Gaddis who said, "I decided to dress up as the most horrifying thing I could think of, which is the black woman..."

My hope is that seeing this vile image you will either commit or recommit to be in solidarity with those of us working to dismantle racism and white supremacy. Regarding the photo, I added the red.