White People, We Need To Talk

Kymberly Smith
Aug 9, 2017 · 8 min read

Like many other black people I am tired. I’m tired of the overt racism, tired of the covert racism, and tired of the white saviors. White people have a seat we need to chat; if you want to help so badly in dismantling white supremacy here are a few things you can do to help and not actually be a hindrance:

  1. Shutup.

No seriously, be quiet. I get it you have thoughts and opinions and they need to be heard. You have questions, comments and concerns; here’s a pro- tip: if you’re quiet long enough to actually listen to what a black person is saying and reflect on it, more likely than not your questions will be answered. Social media is constantly flooded with white liberals, leftists, centrists etc. all jumping in black people’s mentions asking questions we’ve already answered or giving their opinions where it’s not wanted or needed. The worst part is when you go to a black person’s space (i.e. a Black Lives Matter meeting) and instead of being a guest and listening, they decide to talk over people of color, tone police, and insist we change our message to pander to white feelings. No. Shut up.

2. Get Over Yourself

We get it Jan, you went to an Ivy league school and took some African Studies classes and now you think you’re an expert in the black experience. You’re not. I don’t care if you grew up in the trap and was the only white person at your high school and all of your friends are black; you’re not black, so you will never understand or even begin to fathom what black people experience on the daily. We are subjected to all forms of racism on a daily basis because society was built on white supremacist ideologies; it’s a fact. Therefore, you will never be faced with the systemic and institutional racism we face daily. Get over yourself, you think you know but you have no idea.

3. Self reflect

Alright kids here is where I’m going to lose you, but I promise if you stick with me I won’t steer you wrong. All white people are racist that’s just it, racism is so deeply ingrained in our society that all white people hold bias toward black people. The images you see daily are negative and they unconsciously have an affect on you. This is where your work should begin when it comes to dismantling white supremacy; with yourself. Remember when Michael Jackson said “if you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change’? get to work. Share positive images of black people on social media, take a second before you do or say something and ask yourself could this impact the perception of the black community negatively? When speaking with black people do you center yourself? Do you make it about you and what you want to do or black people and what needs to be done? Challenge your own internalized racism daily. It’s work it’s not easy and it may make you look at yourself and your non black friends and family differently, but it’s necessary. Fix yourself first.

4. White Privilege-You have it, own it, now use it

All white people have and benefit from white privilege. Having it isn’t the issue, you can’t help you were born white; nobody is asking you to apologize for that (also no one cares if you’re 1% African, you check caucasian on a job application, you know you have white privilege and you’re using it) I’m sure as hell not apologizing for being black. Essentially what black people and other POC are asking you to do is acknowledge that you are allotted certain privileges because you are white, so use those privileges to help hinder and eventually destroy white supremacy. Do this by educating the white community on racism, learn more about white privilege and be ready to school your brethren on the subject (hit them with the facts and leave them holding the L). Another great way is amplifying black voices; this can be as simple as retweeting an informational thread by a black person, sharing blog posts and/or news stories showcasing positivity in the black community. I always tell white people that you should start off by following 5 black people on social media (creatives, business owners, scholars etc.) from those 5 I guarantee you will find an additional 5 non white people to follow and I promise it will keep going from there.

5. Give Your Money To Black People

This is one of the most simple things you can do.. You like sci fi? Google black sci fi authors and buy a book from them and leave a review on Amazon (or wherever you buy your books). With the popularity of Etsy and other online stores featuring handmade and vintage items, it’s not necessarily hard to find things listed by black people. We Buy Black is an awesome Etsy-esque store that features only products and services by black people. If you live in a diverse area go ahead and pass by your normal shopping spot and start checking out some black owned businesses. You’re a movie buff? Go see a film written and directed by a black person; I mean who tells our stories better than us? Patreons and Go-Fund Me are great ways to support up and coming black businesses and creatives, you love the knowledge a black person you follow drops and want to see them continue to create? Drop a little coinage in their Patreon/Paypal and give them that backing to help them keep the great content coming. Too much of strain? I got news for your, we’re all out here helping white people get money and prosper everyday (I legit go to Target twice a week) so why can’t we do the same for black people? it’s no secret that one of the major ways that white supremacy keeps black Americans disenfranchised is by making sure the economic playing field is in no way level. Let’s change that. Buying black at least once a week will make a huge difference.

6. Call out injustice-but don’t expect a cookie for it.

This is where a lot of “allies” mess up. Calling out injustice is key to smashing white supremacy, however you have to do it because you know it’s the right thing to do. This has to be selfless, there isn’t a prize for doing the most good, there aren’t “woke awards” given out to white allies, either you’re down or not. The most infuriating thing I hear on a daily basis from “allies” is “I do so much for the black community, I go to protests, call out injustices, I am trying to help you people and all you do is complain”. Here’s the thing, being black in America is tiring at times. We’re angry, we’re tired and just all around fed up with the state of America, we’ve been fighting this fight for literally hundreds of years and now you want a pat on the back for just becoming aware after Trump was elected? Excuse me while I search for fucks to give (sorry fresh out). Stop centering yourself and your feelings and either keep working or stay home. I really can’t put it more simply than that, be prepared to be critiqued by black people who have been doing this for years and be prepared for not all black people to get the warm and fuzzies when you drag a racist troll online. We deal with this crap daily and even after you go home we still will be dealing and working for a very long time. We do thank you for what you do, but we’re not about to bow down just because you’re being a decent human (I mean shouldn’t we all be?).

7. Unless You Have A Note From Your Doctor You’re Not Colorblind

Here’s the thing I get what you mean when you yell “I’m colorblind”, you’re trying to articulate that you don’t judge people based on their ethnic background. Cool, but here’s the problem with that; when you say you don’t see color you’re also dismissing what black people have been through due simply to their color. You’re dismissing the systemic racism we face, the disproportionate rates in which we’re incarcerated and a slew of other experiences that are unique to black people and non black people of color. Simply put you’re being lazy and invalidating, and stop it. Don’t judge us based on our skin color, but also don’t negate our experiences. We’re fighting for black liberation for a reason and we need you to recognize and know those reasons even if you can’t relate.

8. Educate Yourself-Seriously, Google is Free

Like everything in life education is key. You’ll never fully understand what it’s like to be black in America, but you can educate yourself and try to be better and do better. Educate yourself, don’t expect us to do it for you. Don’t be lazy, I want to know something I find books on the subject, google it, and if I still am confused then I ask clarifying questions and I’m always willing to pay for the answer, if I want it bad enough. However, never think it’s a black person’s job to educate you on White Supremacy in America, when we do threads and make blog posts that’s us educating you for free (something we really don’t need to be doing; see: #4) be appreciative of that and be willing to go the extra mile to get the information you need to restructure society into something fair and just. There are countless books on race relations written by black people-read them, hell take a class. Go out there and get the information for yourself and we’ll help you understand along the way, but don’t act like we owe you something-we don’t. This country was built off of black labor, let’s finally put an end to that.

Hopefully this helps also, their are plenty of other folks who probably articulated all of this better and made a longer list, but I felt like these are the issues I’m seeing the most and needed to address in my own way. Now let’s get out there and dismantle some white supremacy!

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