please stop spending time, energy and breath telling us that you’re “not like other white people.” and don’t put in any effort into telling us that white people aren’t all the same. we know that. we know that, we know that, we know that. we’ve known that for hundreds of years. we know that because our families have always told us so. we know that because our experiences have always told us so. we know that because the media has always told us so.
do you know how many white people we know? we can’t count them on two hands, there are so many. and characters? thousands, if not more. public figures? you got it.
how many times have you been told that you’re the first white person someone has ever met? you’re the first white person someone has ever worked with? you’re the first white person someone has befriended? oh god, the pressure.
you suddenly represent the entire world of white people! except, you don’t. because this likely has never, ever happened to you. and it never, ever will.
and even if you go somewhere that white people arent the majority, the people there still have thousands of books and television shows and films that built their white schema. so you don’t have to worry, they know what to expect. they know you’re a good person.
so when a white person screws up, don’t spend your time trying to tell everyone that you’re not like them. we know.
because we get it. when someone from our communities screws up, we know we’re going to be judged for it. we’re all going to trial for someone else’s behavior — and don’t say it’s not true, look at when hate crimes rise toward a group. after an incident.
we get it. we are often the “firsts” for people. the collective “we” that is the community of minorities that you exist beside day by day. the first coworker, the first friend, the first teacher, the first neighbor. and that means we come bearing lessons to teach and thinking to correct. because the media hasn’t done us justice. people don’t have thousands of books and films and television shows to draw positive ideas of us from — they have the opposite. and now we’re supposed to challenge what they’ve been taught.
for many of us, all our lives, we are told we represent our people. we carry their stories on our backs and we are responsible for presenting a good image. to show the white world we are deserving of trust and kindness and basic respect. that we are productive members of society.
that has to change. it’s time for you to stop worrying about what we think of white people and start consciously reframing what you think of us. dash your assumptions and leave your preconceived notions at the door. check your friends for microaggressions and stop getting defensive when you’re checked, too.
it’s no longer our job to try and prove to you who we are. it’s your job to try to see it.
gummygunk
yousharknotpass
blakekathryn
jbbartram-illu
vaporwave
areudirty
theartofmadeline
pixelskylines
janainaart
