I wrote in my last post about getting some additional wear out of my non-work appropriate clothes during this time of quarantine – it also cuts the other way in the sense that other days I’m more of less wearing the equivalent of daytime pajamas. Leggings, sneakers, a loose fitting top, and a velvet open front cardigan (the photos don’t do it justice in showing its velvety sheen) are pretty much peak lounge wear for me.
Unrelated to the above, but of infinitely more importance, the last weeks have basically been a living hellscape that have reminded us all of the very real, very pervasive, and very deadly place of systemic racism in our society. The murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the countless victims before them are a stain on our society, and also a very much needed call to action that I hope, unlike all the other times this has happened before, will actually be heeded in a meaningful way. While the examples I just listed are drawn from south of the Canadian border, make no mistake that Canada is a colonizing, settler society, with deeply ingrained anti-Black racism and a legacy of mistreatment of Indigenous people that is nothing short of shameful. I've been doing a lot of reflecting over the past two weeks and here's where I'm sitting:
- It's not enough for me to simply be not racist. I have to be aggressively anti-racist. That means reckoning with the reality of my white privilege, which I know exists but which I acknowledge and then never really think about in the context of my daily life. Actually grappling with that means I have to listen more, educate MYSELF and not expect others to do it, be willing to not be defensive about the reality of my privilege and how it might blind me to certain things, and be more willing than I have been to embrace the awkwardness of all this, call people out when it's deserved instead of sweeping it under the rug, and let my feelings get hurt when it's warranted.
- I have to be proactive in raising my daughter to do all of the above. Sure, we have some kids books that feature non-white characters and history and stories but that's not enough. That's just encouraging awareness and appreciation of diversity - that's a great thing but it's just not enough.
- I have a platform. It's small and it's not usually a place where I grapple with things that are terribly important, but it's a platform nonetheless, and it's mine. So, in order to try to be a little more of an ally in terms of how I use this space, I'm pledging that, in each and every post, I'm going to share a resource or a link or something that amplifies the voices of BIPOC individuals and communities. It's not much, and I know that. But I hope it still has value.
So, in accordance with my last point, here's the first thing I'd like to direct your attention to - the brilliant, affecting podcast 1619, arising from the New York Time's Magazine 1619 project. I listened to the whole thing over a few days this past week and I can't praise it enough. Please consider taking a listen.
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leggings: Old Navy / shirt: Winners / cardigan: ASOS / shoes: Aldo
