As a white person, I know that I speak from a place of privilege, never fully able to understand the deep rooted issues that come from being a minority. I had the convenience of learning about racism and inequality from textbooks and newscasts rather than having the ideology branded into me from the day that I was born. I’ve never had the uncertainty and anxiety that comes along with having a darker skin tone - the weight of knowing that I could be detained and killed for the simplest of traffic violations, or paying for cigarettes, or jogging around my neighborhood, or for the simple act of daring to breathe and to exist. But I want every person of color to know that I will be your ally. I promise to recognize that I am here to support YOU. I am not here to walk in front of you, but to walk beside you as a friend. I promise to give your cause a voice, and to make sure that your stories will be heard, but I will not speak louder than you or think that my cries deserve to be heard more than yours.
You have suffered under white supremacy for generations.
You have suffered centuries of cultural erasure, genocide, injustice and oppression.
You have suffered through having your voices go unheard, your pain and anger suppressed, and your spirits crushed by countless false promises of freedom and equality.
This world, and this country need to change. And if myself and people like me no longer want to be seen as the root of racism and supremacy, we need to change it with you.
