My Piece

I’ve been “quiet” my whole life because most of y’all been busy with the talking and don’t want to listen. But ask Hannah or a small number of people in my life: if you show a willingness to listen I’ll talk your ear off to the point where it’s probably annoying. With that being said, I feel the need to provide my unsolicited perspective on race relations, especially when I consider that a lot of people in my social media circles don’t have many black people in their lives.

Before I continue, I would like to say that the support the black community is receiving right now is amazing and I am so grateful for it. PLEASE keep this energy to help affect actual change in our world in the weeks, months and years to come. The arrest of George Floyd’s murderers is a very small step towards true racial equality. Understand that this is about more than just how we are treated by police officers. These events provide a very graphic representation of the realities faced by black people in all facets of life in Canada and the USA.

Also, let’s not forget that this battle is older than some people acknowledge. Some names that have resonated with me over time:

• Fred Hampton
• Rodney King
• Trayvon Martin
• Eric Garner

*just seeing now they’re all males: mentally I’m always challenging my own biases and tendencies. DO THE SAME.

I want to start by explaining why I think most people I know have contributed to systemic racist (but don’t worry, I’m also going to let you know how you can do something about it in the medium-to-long run). Most of my “friends” on social media are white, hardly any are black (that’s an unfortunate product of the circumstances I was raised in), and most of you have engaged in microaggressive behaviour or the toleration of such behaviour towards black people (including myself) and other minority groups. Some “harmless” words directed towards me by friends/colleagues that have belittled black people:

• “nigger lipping”
• “your hair looks like burnt cheetos”
• “you’re not really black”/”you’re the whitest black person I know”
• “can your hair even get messy?”
• “shouldn’t you be a better dancer?”
• “you’re lucky your name is Andrew, or I probably wouldn’t have interviewed you”
• “we hire minorities as a form of affirmative action to correct for past transgressions”

*if you said anything on this list, please realize I’m calling out a tolerated behaviour, not you as a person. I don’t harbour feelings of negativity towards others for what they didn’t know.

“Harmless” events I’ve experienced:

• police called on me while I was cloud watching in a park.
• stopped, searched and questioned as a minor in relation to a crime I had absolutely no association with
• continuously, to this day, I am trailed in retail stores.
• an initially successful application to sublet my first apartment was denied after the building manager met me in person.
• white people touching my hair without permission as a kid.

My experiences pale in comparison to what other black people have gone through, but it doesn’t make them any less valid in demonstrating that racism is a daily reality for black Canadians.

Such microaggressions are the smallest act of racism (as if “small” racism even exists… here I am trying to dance around white fragility), and it often goes undetected by bystanders or even the perpetrator. However, this “small” act normalizes racism in society and is in part what empowers the likes of Derek Chauvin. Microaggressions create the perception for people with racist ideologies that others share their opinions, but are just less open about it. If racists didn’t believe others were racist or could easily be convinced that racism is ok, do you think they would be so quick to share or act on their beliefs? When you are unaware of microaggressions occuring in your presence, you are subtly enforcing stereotypes and discrimination in others and yourself. You are also making the victim feel alone and helpless in your white spaces. When you engage in or allow microaggressions in your presence, you are telling society, companies and politicians that such behaviour is ok. It’s a small set of chain reactions of “not racist” people and “not racist” behaviour that normalizes racism and maybe even encourages it for those who were unfortunate enough to develop overtly racist beliefs. I think it’s clear that microaggressions are a large contributor to systemic racism.

Cliche: admitting it is the first step, but you’ve got to know about it before you can admit it. Example: Connor McDavid’s response, the typical reaction of the privileged. He’s acknowledged the problem and his prior ignorance, and he has vowed to educate himself and do better in the future. But now is the time to move beyond words. I would challenge you and the Connor McDavid’s of the world to show and share the evidence of your learning! Share with people what you’ve learned because such discussions will help you to better understand those concepts, and they will help others grow as well (trust me, I’m a certified teacher) What would make me happier than seeing black squares for a day is seeing privileged people take a day to “blackout” and only share their knowledge of ways they and others close to them have perpetuated racism within their society (if I had any significant social media presence, I would definitely push for this to become an actual thing)

That’s it. That’s all I am asking from my white peers for now. Learn and share. Learn by doing your own research and asking friends when appropriate. Share through social media. I don’t want to see photos of your new house right now, I want to see photos of what you’ve learned because that shows me you’re taking this seriously and not just jumping on a social media trend. Share by having real conversations with family and friends. Call people out when you see them condoning racism, no matter how big or "small".

If you’re still reading this, it’s likely you’re already less a part of the problem than others… which is why we keep telling you (especially white people) IT’S UP TO YOU to spread these perspectives, truths and understandings to other white people who aren’t taking black people seriously! Without the voice of the privileged beside ours, I feel as though underprivileged people are continuously forced to take increasingly drastic measures to have our voices heard.

Obviously there’s a lot more I could speak on, but this is the piece of information that I feel has been missing from the conversation. I was going to say “I hope this perspective is meaningful to you”, but that’s not at all what I would mean to say. What I mean to say is “I hope this perspective was barely anything new, but if it was, you better educate yourself and change the way you act”. Consider that these are conversations I have had daily in my home for as long as I can remember, and these are realities that I have faced for just as long. Keep your energy and enthusiasm moving past just today or next week or next month. I want my people to be supported forever unconditionally. Let’s keep this momentum moving forward and let’s keep demanding changes for as long as it takes this time.

*If you feel offended by this post, please re-read it as a diss track directed towards you. Play the instrumental to “Hit em Up” simultaneously for maximum effect. Because I mean no offence unless you are ignorant enough to think I do.