I am seeing a whole lot of posts from people in my community with reactions to what is unfolding in the US.

I have some thoughts. Some of them may be triggering. I'm past caring about a bunch of stuff this week, including how people feel about my opinions (none of which are harmful, they may just make you uncomfortable).

Here are some of the reactions that I've seen and read:

"I find this shocking"

You know what is shocking? That you are still fucking shocked by this. Black men and women, Indigenous men and women have been the target of white people for HUNDREDS OF YEARS. Your shock is a non-reaction. You think it makes you look sympathetic and empathetic. It doesn't. It makes you look like a white person upholding white supremacy.

"I don't know what to say"

You don't know what to say? I don't actually don't think there are enough words to say right now. I do think action and education are more powerful. If you don't know what to say, go read a book or take an online course or read some articles or give money. If you don't know what to say, then any words you speak will probably be meaningless.

"I feel helpless"

You feeling helpless is the problem. We have been helping less and less with each generation. Our helplessness is an excuse for not educating ourselves, for not doing the work. As my dear friend says, you are not a tree...MOVE.

"I feel blessed to live in Canada (or the UK or Australia or anywhere but the US)"

Maybe it is a blessing to live in Canada because it gives many of us an excuse NOT to take action. We use our beliefs that politics in Canada are more leftist as a reason to excuse our racism. Silence is a form of violent aggression when it means we turn a blind eye to racism. A Black woman died in Toronto this week. The police were involved in her death. The UN has called Canada out for its treatment of Indigenous communities. Our PM has ignored them.

"Violence is not the answer"

If you believe violence is not the answer, I invite you to consider that every major moment in history in which people did not feel seen or heard or honoured changed because of violence. Stonewall. Suffragettes. Repealing of Apartheid. Arab Spring. In the words of MLK 'Riot is the language of the unheard'. When we say that violence isn't the answer its because we believe we have other options and other avenues. If you have tried every other option, if you have been screaming, crying, raging, praying, writing, talking, filming, sitting in, grieving, and fighting for HUNDREDS OF YEARS with no change what would you do?

Enough with armchair protesting and thinking we can do our work from our desks, our sofas, or in-between Netflix. Enough with cocooning into our white supremacist, racist nests, and hoping the newsreel will change. Enough with avoiding tough conversations or calling out friends or ignoring what needs to change. If we truly, really, honestly, whole-heartedly want things to be different we have to choose differently.

Notice who is and isn't posting about racism in your community.

And if you aren't regularly, consistently doing that work, why? What are you scared of?

Doing this work of unpacking racial biases will change your life.

It'll change how you see your ancestors, your lineage, your community. It'll change how you interact and engage with family and friends. It'll change how you see TV, news articles, books, art, music - the world. It'll make you super unpopular with people who are not ready to admit they are racist (hot tip: you are racist) or not ready to talk about white supremacy. It'll make you humble because you will fuck up over and over again. It'll make you resilient as you do better and care less and less about 'doing' it wrong. It'll change your friendships - some people will trust you more, some people will be triggered and unfriend you.

It will not likely change in your lifetime. Stop trying to think it will. Instead, let's make it possible that in 3 or maybe 2 generations things can be different. Plant the seeds now and teach the coming generations how to nourish them.

Our silence is dangerous. Our non-action is violence. Our avoidance is racist.

Know better, do better over and over again.

*I will not tolerate harmful language or responses.*

If you are going to share, please be willing to monitor and manage comments from a place that will not create trauma or triggering for Black, Indigenous, or People of Colour. I ask that if you have not done any work with facilitators to unpack and address your own racial biases, please don't share this instead choose to learn from it.