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Every time I bring up whiteness, a white person inevitably suggests that I say it differently. They "offer" that I call it privilege or prejudice or put the focus on racism and systems of oppression. They want politeness and palatability that does not implicate them based on the color of their skin.
But we, white folx, are implicated - compromised at birth - whether we like it or not.
Given our passion for spiritual practice and personal transformation, how are we not talking about whiteness all the time? About how it robs us of our humanity and our human potential? About how it holds us back from richness of relationship and diversity of perspectives?
How are we not breaking it down with our therapists, tackling it on the mat, and contemplating it on the cushion?
There is no self-awareness without social location. And if we are really committed to the wholeness that we so relentlessly seek, then we need to start naming and confronting whiteness at every turn. We need to listen and learn from people of color. And we need to take action to deconstruct our minds and dismantle the systems that uphold white supremacy.
This week is all about accountability: the kind that breaks down the barriers that separate us and builds community between us. Are you in?
Kerri (she/her)
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Join Kerri + Lauren Tuesday for a video meet-up to break down how we can impact the upcoming local elections!
Every month, we gather with Patreon members giving $10+ for a virtual chat on different topics. And when you join this community, you're helping our team create WELLread and CTZN Podcast. Win-win!
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DEAR MEN
On November 5th, 49,000 races are taking place in 34 states! With Roe v Wade on the line, our friends at #VOTEPROCHOICE just launched the nation's largest voter guide highlighting #VOTEPROCHOICE
champions - local leaders pledging to defend our reproductive freedoms at every level of local office. But cis women aren't the only ones impacted by abortion. Twelve men share their abortion stories. And it's time for men (particularly cis, white men) to step the fuck up. Men 4 Choice has resources to help men become the feminists we need right now.
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ON LYNCHING
On Tuesday morning, Trump described the impeachment investigation as a "lynching." That's right - a lynching. But this is not by accident. It's just one more way he's weaponized race for his advantage. Only a lynching is a lynching. A basic definition of lynch is “to put to death by mob action, usually a hanging, without legal authority.” The Equal Justice Initiative describes lynching as “violent and public events that traumatized black people throughout the country and were largely tolerated by state and federal officials.” Trivializing an act so violent reduces the humanity of those who truly suffered at the hands of lynch mobs. This language is dangerous and wrong and must never be tolerated from anyone, and certainly not from the president.
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WHITENESS
It's time to talk about being white in America. I mean, it's way past time, but many of us are just catching up. And in the wake of the "whitewashing of lynching," here are some resources to accelerate your learning. 1. Order Me & White Supremacy, Layla Saad's book for the step-by-step how-to on deconstructing whiteness and dismantling systems. 2. Talk to someone. The idea that whiteness is a problematic state of being, one that requires immediate intervention for the health of the nation, has been seeping into white consciousness since the 1960s and even earlier. So why is no one talking about it on the therapy couch? This is a must read. 3. Do your work. Dismantling whiteness is an every moment, everyday practice of love and accountability. Love in how we see and treat one another with the full dignity and respect that they deserve. And accountability in how we take responsibility for our part, our complicity, and our job in making it right.
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BEING ACCOUNTABLE
Accountability looks like how we come into community with one another (adrienne maree brown). And it's an everyday practice of taking responsibility and being in relationship. Here's a helpful list of practices that make accountability and transformation possible. And check out this conversation on how to support harm doers in being accountable featuring amazing leaders like adrienne maree brown, Stas Schmiedt, Lea Roth, Mimi Kim, RJ Maccani, Priya Rai, Mia Mingus, Martina Kartman, Elliott Fukui, Sonya Shah, Rachel Herzing, Shira Hassan, and Ann Russo.
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