09/06/2020
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
- Maya Angelou
Here’s my perspective. White privilege is not an attack against white people. It’s truth. It’s the society we were raised in. The history that we were taught.
In American history, most of what is taught is about how so many white people did amazing things and black people were slaves. Besides Martin Luther King, Jr., the black population was not known for their many achievements, not getting nearly as much “air time” as white people.
So from a very young age, it’s being taught in our schools on a subconscious level that white equals achievements, black equals oppression.
History is history. Let’s learn from it and teach it differently moving forward. Let’s stop repeating these similar systematic injustices and acknowledge where the problems have been for all these years.
Neuroplasticity shows us that we can literally change the physical structure of our brain and the way we think through subconscious reprogramming. Which means, through neuroplasticity, we change change the way our brains think about racism.
This is going to take a lot of work and effort. But I have so much hope that we can make more long term systemic change, as long as we speak up and band together as the union that we are.
I don’t know if I’m going to say the “right” thing. I don’t know if I’m going to unintentionally offend anyone. But what I do know is that I am an ally and I will stand up for what I believe is right and just. ✊🏼✊🏾✊🏿
