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| Students at Howard standing in protest with Ferguson |
"This, all of this that is happening in Missouri right now, it's not new. Things like this have been happening for years".
My Dad spoke those words to me early this morning.
This isn't new.
This is just the first time I've been aware of it, the first time I've been old enough to realize just how scary the world can be sometimes.
The first time I've been able to look at a situation and call it what it is: injustice.
Crazy, mad chaos.
If you aren't aware of what's happening in Ferguson, MO (what's been happening since August 1), then I encourage and plead with you: read the news. Inform yourself, because it's terribly sad and it needs to be discussed.
All of these issues are awful, awful, awful, but they are real and scary and oppressive and happening.
I know, for some of us, it seems like the world is happy place. To be honest though, it's not. I wish it were, but it isn't. The world is hard, and people are mean. Joy is found in sacred spaces, and I'm sure that there is so much beauty that will unfold, but right alongside the bliss and the peace and the joy and the laughter is pain.
And we need to pay attention. We need to open our eyes, and we need to discuss what we see, because people are hurting other people.
The scenario unfolding in Ferguson, Missouri pulls on my heartstrings like crazy. I know I'm not qualified to speak on it for various reasons, and in fact I think many of us should stop speaking about it because we aren't the ones being abused. Many times what we need in this world is to stop speaking and giving our opinions and start listening to the voices of those who actually know what they're talking about.
I'm not the one being oppressed or profiled, and I'd rather listen to the experiences of those who are in order to learn from them.
There are far better voices that should be speaking about the injustice happening in Ferguson, and that's all I really want to use my voice to say. I'm a white, privileged, middle-class girl from Texas, and to all of my brothers and sisters who are oppressed by cultural norms, hear me out: I am listening.
You're the one that needs to be speaking up.
Your voice is the one that needs to be heard. Your story is the one that needs to be told. Your oppression is what should be brought to the light, and my privilege and socioeconomic status and gender need to be set aside and overstepped for the sake of humility and love.
To anyone reading these words, I hope you are aware of this truth: white privilege is real, and this is not okay in any sense of the word.
Racism is still alive today, and just because the Civil War is over and we now have a black president doesn't mean that oppressive culturally acceptable words, phrases, and mindsets have been completely done away with. These things still exist, and it's time to start realizing just how true this is.
Let's strive for cultural changes, you and me. It's important and necessary, and above all I believe it is time.
It. Is. Time.
The time has come for us to stop judging any person by what we see on the outside. The time has come to stop assuming that any person lives a certain way simply because of his or her exterior. The time has come to stop objectifying bodies (because that's exactly what this all is), and to start seeing the human being beneath the flesh and bones.
I've said it before and I will say it again: we are made of substance; not skin.
The time has come to lay down weapons and swords and walk alongside peace, because war is sad and disheartening and I think we're all made for Shalom lives.
We all, you and me and that lovely person over there, are made for Shalom lives.
The time has come to stop using language that implies negativity, and I'm really tired of us forming communities that marginalize and exclude and push and push away the souls of other people.
What if we could come together, wouldn't that be lovely? It sounds out of this world fantastic, and I think we'd all learn a lot. What diversity there would be, with so many unique individuals all gathered together in unity and love. I could be mistaken, but I bet we'd discover that as special as we all are, we really have quite a lot in common.
Maybe we'd even discover that underneath it all, we're all human.
So, let's talk about change. Let's uncover what we can do to shift our world away from one that hurts and dehumanizes people to one that encourages and affirms people.
And let's begin with Ferguson.
My faith is at my core, and so I take it back to Jesus and am now placing it in the context of the Church.
Strong, strong Jesus. He's my hope and light. I know not everyone sees Him this way, but regardless of your religious and even political views, these conversations about profiling and abuse and privilege and power matter. They absolutely matter, and we all need to start actively seeking change.
If you will and want, join me in prayer. Let's pray for peace, because Ferguson needs it badly. Let's pray for hope, because there's always a little bit alive. Let's pray for love and change, and let's pray for the people who are protesting against state-sanctioned violence, because those kids who have been murdered are someone else's brothers and sisters, children and friends. Those people are people, and they deserve some respect right now. Lastly, let's pray for us, because we need to do life differently. We need to keep learning to love.
Next is this: let's acknowledge white privilege. It's real and alive and awful and I'm over it. We need to stop seeing life through a pretentious, pampered, everything is great because everything is great for me lens, because newsflash: everything is not great for everyone else in the world, and your opinion is not the only one that matters. We need to stop saying and doing things that benefit white people alone, because white people are not God's gift to humanity. We're all people here, and we are all made in the image of God. We're all important and loved and equal and beautiful, and we need to start acting like this is true. We need to stop assuming that we're right while everyone else is wrong, because most of the time, the opposite is likely true. We all think we're right, but we're probably mostly wrong. Acknowledging white privilege is difficult because it means being humble if you're someone that fits that category. Humility is hard, because it's uncomfortable and awkward and means overstepping pride, but I believe it is true and right and all sorts of kingdom stuff. Humble is what we should want to be, especially if we claim to follow Jesus.
Another awareness is this: cease racial profiling. Stop looking at someone and assuming that he or she lives a certain way or is a certain way because of what you see on the outside. Stop saying things like "he looks like a thug" or "she's probably a whore". We're all guilty of racial profiling and/or stereotyping, myself included. However, we shouldn't gloss over it or pretend that it's okay. It's not okay, and we need to start talking about it. We need to admit when we're wrong, when we're hurting other people or making assumptions about them based on outward appearances. We need to acknowledge when this happens, and then we need to try and make changes.
Lastly is this: listen to the stories, words, thoughts, and opinions of other people. If you know me well, then you know I am a feminist. Sometimes, when people meet me and learn this, they assume so much about me, including that all of my beliefs are wrong or mean-spirited. I can't tell you the number of times that someone has sat and listened to my point of view, simply sat and listened to why I am a feminist and what all the term means to me, and suddenly they're open to the idea. Suddenly they let their guard down, and suddenly a space is made in which growth can happen and love can spread. Listening is beautiful, and I wish we'd learn this art hard and well. As people we are complex, and we are made of stories to be shared. We are made of depth and experiences and hurt and joy, and when we share our stories, when we sit and listen to what another person has been through, we begin to enter a space that I'm sure God is in the midst of, because in those places there is redemption through and through.
All over the United States people are protesting with the town of Ferguson in the posture of hands up, often holding signs that say "Don't Shoot". Times Square shut down tonight because of peaceful protesting, multitudes of people gathering together, hands up, to signify one thing: we are with you. We are with you, Ferguson. We are with you, we are here, and we are standing against the pain in the midst of all the chaos.
Hands up. Palms open.
How humbling is such a posture?
My hands are up. My heart is open. The microphone is yours, to you, the one who is being hurt by all of this shit.
I want to listen. To anyone hurt by cultural norms, I want to listen. To anyone affected by white privilege, I want to hear your side. To any person who has been racially profiled, I am deeply, truly sorry, and I want you to tell me the kind of person that you really are. To the families who have lost loved ones in the midst of all of this tragedy, my heart goes out to you, and I hope that you are able to grieve. To those who have been oppressed or denied or marginalized, I am extending my hand, drawing you close, and asking you to speak.
I want to hear your voice.
*If you would like to practically help the city of Ferguson, click here to donate in order to put food into the mouths of children who need it.
*Police brutality is an issue that you can stop, so consider voicing complaints if you or someone you know has ever experienced such abuse.
