As the Sign Says: "White People. Do Something"

Oklahoma Eagle, 5/27/2020

To all of my White friends and family who are wondering how the death of George Floyd could result in peaceful protests now around the world, and escalating to violence could happen, it is important to recognize that historically, the white privileged/empowered culture created this inequity between races.

Whites enslaved and sold people as commodities for profit. When slavery was “eliminated,” Whites looked for other ways to control now “freed” people of color. Imprisoning them for little or no reason and putting them to work on chain gangs for personal gain, creating a farming system where farmers were always in debt to the landowners.

Whites blocked these U.S. citizens’ rights to vote, to learn, to  health care, to hold jobs, to pursue and advance in careers, to banking services including home loans, to safety in their own communities and homes from other residents and law enforcement.

Whites have led the efforts to put systems in place in all of our institutions, businesses and organizations to limit, if not prevent, people of color from working within those entities, from benefitting from the services or opportunities available from those entities, from the privileges they protected for white society only.

Many whites presume that the problem of racism is a “Black” problem. But is isn’t. It is a problem created by whites, so as white citizens of this country it is upon us to solve the problem that our forefathers (and no doubt some mothers – I reference the photo of white women over this weekend painting BLM graffiti on buildings) created.

GailyGrind, 5/31/2020 - Adrian Garcia

What can we whites do? 

What can you personally do? 

Work against the racism in your workplace, church, school system, as well as any other expression of racism within your world. It means educating yourself and others as to how overwhelming systemic racism is in our country. How shockingly inhumane the U.S. is while at the same time promoting itself as a country of equality and condemning other countries for their inhumane actions. How real, how vivid unearned white privilege and power are in the U.S. today.

The only way change will occur is when we the white people of America act collectively to eliminate systemic racism and ensure that our citizens of color --- our friends, our family, our neighbors, our co-workers, our equals --- enjoy the same freedoms that we enjoy without the threats and limitations --- or death --- imposed on them today.

So much of what is happening is on the shoulders of Donald Trump. He has given white supremacists the power and the privilege to now only speak out, but to act out with his protection. He has given them positions in his White House. His message has been clear. He will not act for all Americans and their equal protection under the law.

It is time that the freedoms and rights guaranteed to all citizens of this country actually be available to all citizens of this country.

We can talk about it all we want. I can write about it all I want. Nothing will happen until we take responsibility, stand up and act to make this change. Don’t wait for the “leaders” to do it. Bottom up.

Respectfully,

Donna Ullrich