#TheCoalitionSpeaks is an initiative that gives a voice for people to talk about how they process, experience, or deal with various forms of #inequality. These stories are the subjective experiences of our supporters and expose a variety of emotions that accompany the experiences surrounding issues of inequality.
The excerpt below was contributed by Jill P.
"I’ve never woken up to start my day, and felt fear about my well-being and safety out in the world. I have never feared the police, apart from getting 'in trouble' or getting a ticket. I’ve never paid much attention to the fact that I am a product of white privilege. I have never second-guessed whether I didn’t get a job interview or a pay raise because of my qualifications or the color of my skin.
“ I’ve seen and felt the wrath of this hardcore denial and white-knuckling to hold onto the hate.”
I’ve inherently known that #racism is a sickening part of history, with an acute awareness that it was lingering in certain areas of the country. But I had no idea how prevalent and forceful it still is.
Since I was young, I recall feelings of grief and anger at the idea of slavery and white supremacy. It shook me to my core to try to comprehend how something like this comes to be. How a human mind can become convinced that another humans skin color deems them 'better than' or 'less than”. That the human mind can take that conviction and decide that it is their duty to torture, dehumanize, control, stifle, and eradicate the lives of the ones they’ve appointed as 'less than'. I struggle with how this can be, and how we are still surrounded by such primal and remedial mindsets. My interests in science, psychology and biology lead me to a yearning to understand; because in order to formulate a cure for this sickness, we need to understand how it comes to be. It must be a virus in the mind, and faulty wiring in the brain, because it has no root in logic.
In the recent months, I’ve made an effort to counter racist comments with an offering of facts, perspective and an attempt to educate. I’ve seen and felt the wrath of this hardcore denial and white-knuckling to hold onto the hate. There is a thick shield around these minds, filled with an anger, fueled by fear.
I’ve come to the conclusion that at this point, nothing I say will have an impact on these people."
We Believe There is Hope
We have heard from so many people with experiences like Jill, who recognize that there are indeed some who are hopelessly anchored in hate of "the other", whether it be minority race, gender, or any other disenfranchised group. But there are powers in numbers. For every person who allows their mind to be ruled by misinformation or ignorance to the value of all people regardless of minority status, there are others who recognize that these people bring value and beauty to our world.
It is not hopeless. And we are here to make sure of that. We will continue to expose the inequality and empower the majorities to stand up for what is right.
#JointheCoalition by becoming a guest blogger. If you would like to be a part of a future issue, or write a complete blog post on a topic that you are passionate about, please get in touch, we would be happy to have you.