Thank you for your support for the black community. It really means something to me.
First, I really don't want thanks for doing the bare minimum, but I am glad that it means something to you.
Second, I wasn't planning to say anything on the current situation in my own words since I'd rather stick to boosting black voices instead, but I do want to make a few things clear to everyone.
If you don't want to see posts in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, or just posts about the current circumstances in general, then you might as well unfollow me now.
I cannot ignore it. I cannot be silent.
Too many times in the past have I let instances of casual racism pass me by without acting even though I knew they were wrong. Too many times have I scrolled past news stories I should have read, or petitions I should have signed, or donation links I should have clicked. Fuck that. I'm not doing that anymore.
To my fellow white people, we need to do so much better. Every single one of us, including me most of all. We have privilege, and it is our duty to use it in whatever way we can to help tear down the twisted system which gives us that privilege. There is no opting out of this. Either you stand with the black community, or you stand against them. Make no mistake, if you do nothing then you are still choosing a side, and it is not the right one.
I'm not a perfect ally—hell, I don't even think I'm a good one yet—and I can't promise that I'll never get things wrong. But I will listen, and I will learn, and I will do better. I can promise that. Because silence is compliance, and I refuse to comply ever again.
