Respectability politics clearly are not going to save us; they haven’t historically and they won’t today. What they did, however, was move Black folk to assimilate to White cultural standards and make us more “tolerable” to White people. Nonetheless, we were still not viewed as equal or even human.
White folks judge and look down on “rioting” because they’ve never been put in a situation where that was a necessary recourse. In simple terms, to “riot” means to f*** up they check and by no means do the rich and powerful want economic reduction. It’s not about Black Life or Death for some. It is about the status quo and continuation of capitalism.
The Black community is experiencing cultural and collective trauma that has been exacerbated by COVID-19. We are constantly dying as a result of inequities and systemic racism but for too long only lip service (with no real action) has been used to soothe us. And shame on us for allowing that to suffice. We don’t want passive allies. We don’t want non-Blacks upset for the sake of appearing woke. We want your soul to be shaken because you fought along side us in the frontlines because you are tired of seeing humanity striped from people who look like me.
Watching the news traumatic. The chronic stress that Black folks in urban areas face is deleterious to our mental and physical health and well-being. When you talk about disparity, talk about how you’re going support institutions and economic development in urban ghettos (and not the slang “ghetto”, but the true definition of the word – look it up). While we’re on that word take a second a acknowledge the picture that popped into your head when you read the word “ghetto”. Now what do you see when you read the word “suburb”. How do these visualizations compare? Whatever you see, please understand that is the working of societal narratives to get you to see what they want you to believe. It’s a one-sided tactic that never serves people of color. Climbing down from my soap box now.
Naturally, Alescia 