Black Lives Matter: 3 words that shouldn’t need saying in 2020 but sadly doÂ
After witnessing the horrible death of George Floyd at the hands of a sadistic police officer, as we all have, on social media, the Black Lives Matter movement and subsequent protests have ricocheted around the world. Â
As a white male, I am not even going to begin to pretend I understand the lived experience of people of colour either in my home country, the UK, or the US. What I do know is that I am privileged. Yes, I may have had hardships in my life but knowing that does not give me the right to deny my privilege. Instead, I need to own it. Â
I have never been racially abused, I have never been stopped or harassed by the police because of my skin colour and I have never been refused a job or any other privileged that naturally comes from being white because of my race. Those are just some of the privileges I live with. And if you are white; so, do you. They shouldn’t be privileges they should be the rights that everyone enjoys, but sadly that is the world we live in. Â
As a father of a mixed-race teenager I am heartbroken by the world we now live in. Yes, all lives matter but that does not need saying; Black Lives Matter does. It shouldn’t in 2020 but sadly it does. Â
I am not going to claim I understand the lived experienced of people of colour. But I can say I will learn from them, be informed by their experiences, listen to them and stand side by side with them against racism, institutional or outright. Â
When I see statues of old slave traders pulled down and thrown into canals, I don’t feel joy, I feel sickened that it took this moment to bring them down, they should never have been there in the first place. Â
It’s time for a change. In fact, it is way past time. Â
So, don’t shun away from your white privilege, recognise and own it. Use it to call out racism when you see it. Give voice to those that need your support and be a part of the solution instead of bellyaching about a label that makes wearing it uncomfortable. Â
Black Lives Matter: three words that should not need saying in 2020 but sadly do. Â
Join the movement in any way you can, be part of the change. Â
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