In this past week, all 50 states have protested for the Black Lives Matter movement. There have been small protests, and there have been massive ones that have been spread out throughout the whole country.
Although racial injustice has always been an issue we need to change, after the video of George Floyd surfaced on the internet, it was enough. The video of George Floyd was so demoralizing it even got the attention of an audience that is usually silent during these times. It is disappointing it took such a disturbing video to get the attention of certain people, but maybe this will finally turn into a change that is long overdue.
With all of this being sad, as a young white girl, I have realized my duty during this time. I have donated, I have protested, and sure, that is a good start; but it is not enough. Now, I will educate myself and listen. As humans, we are so quick to put ourselves in other people’s shoes, when in reality, we have no business doing so.
We cannot feel the anger people of color are feeling right now; we simply cannot comprehend it. We cannot relate to anything that they are going through, and we cannot argue with any of the feelings they may have. We genuinely have to sit back, and listen for once. We have to listen to their experiences as people of color. We have to set our egos aside, and be able to learn. The quicker we are able to learn, the faster we grow as a society.
There clearly needs to be change in our world. There is no doubt we haven’t made all of the progress that we’ve hoped for. We cannot give up, though. There has been so much activity on social media from a wide variety of people. This can’t stop in a couple weeks because we forget about it. This has to be something that we keep at the front of our priorities if we want real change. We have to continue to donate, protest, post, and educate ourselves. We need to continue to have hard conversations with our friends and families if they aren’t on the same page as us. This is where the growth will come from.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr once said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” The moment you act as if these issues don’t affect you, the moment you become part of the problem. Step up and make a change.
