BLM Movement

I’ve never watched The Help, until now. I was aware of it. I knew of the story. I knew of the white privilege it illustrated in the 2 ½ hours of screen time. The entitlement white people felt they had over another race during those times. Racism didn’t begin with Hitler, it didn’t begin with the colonialists who founded our land, we could say it began in biblical ages when the Egyptians used the Israelites as slaves, but it needs to end now. 

If there is one thing I have learned from the BLM Movement is that there are a lot of under educated people out there and they are all stuck in a cycle. Most beliefs and ways of thinking are passed down from generation to generation and now more than ever we have people breaking those cycles, but we need more. We need more people willing to stand up and speak out against racism saying this isn’t right.

All Humans Are Enough!

This can begin with our schools, across America. We need better education in our school systems on ALL of American History, including World History. Younger generations should be watching movies like The Help and 13^th in school; these movies should be a requirement. These children are the future and if we are going to continue to break the cycle we need these children educated on ALL of American History, not just the good parts, but the dirty, hard to handle parts at times as well. We shelter these children from so much and by doing that we do them a great disservice by not giving them the full truth. Half truths aren’t good enough anymore, not when there are innocent black people losing their lives simply because the color of their skin and some people feeling threatened by them. 

We need to acknowledge and celebrate our differences. NO ONE is better than anyone else.

I believe everyone has the right to free speech and to peacefully protest, it is our Constitutional right as Americans to have those privileges. Black people are Americans, those rights fall to them as well. When those peaceful protests are threatened by the very people who took an oath to serve and protect that is when things get out of hand. I do not agree with the looting and rioting, but that is what it took for these people to be heard, for action to finally start being taken.

A note on peaceful protesting from the movie 13^th, available on Netflix:

            “Peaceful protestors are being viewed as criminals, such as were civil rights activities.”

            “They voluntarily defined a movement around getting arrested.”

I believe these statements are still true today. Peaceful protestors protesting on racism and police brutality are being viewed as criminals. These protests are being treated as if these people were committing a criminal act. They just want to be heard and they want to be able to do that peacefully. These peaceful protests should not be treated as threats until a threat is apparent. 

It is hard for America to take blame for its actions, but it is now time that they start.

“God says we need to love our enemies, it’s hard to do. But it can start by telling the truth.”

-        -- Quote taken from The Help, spoken by Aibileen Clark

It is time we start speaking the truth!

“For years now, I have heard the word ‘wait’. It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This wait has almost always meant never. Justice too long delayed is justice denied.” 

– Martin Luther King Jr.

When will the wait be over?!

The above opinions are my own. Below I have included pieces from two of my closest friends on their opinions on the issues that are happening in our world today revolved around racism and police brutality.

George Floyd Movement Response:

My first reaction was sadness and outrage; another person of color dead at the hands of a white police officer with a violent record. Then the riots began. I am in full support of the peaceful protesting and the black lives matter movement. The rioting and looting is not something that I can support. I also feel fear. I feel that this is yet another wave of the civil rights movement which has been dragged out, prolonged over the last century for much too long. I wish that we could move past these fences that are put up between cultures and learn to see, acknowledge, and celebrate our differences. We need to stop pretending that we can't learn to pronounce each others names, or hold language against each other as an easy way not to learn or to face the future. And this is bigger than the black lives matter movement. For centuries the native Americans have been facing these kinds of issues and discrimination, and they are still fighting the pipeline issues as well as others, being forced to live on reservations, and to live in a way most of us cannot imagine. And there are many more cultures who face similar issues in our country and around the world. It breaks my heart that any human believes they should have the right to make these kinds of choices for someone else. Regardless of Floyd's criminal history Chauvin should not have felt that it was his right to play judge, jury, and executioner, especially without being in danger for his own life. I wish for us to move toward a time when we can be strong together and love each other across the world celebrating our many cultures and languages, traditions and clothing, and not get stuck on the fences that have been constructed to keep us apart and unstable. Create peace and love each other!

Rosilyn

I feel like laughing whenever riots and protests start, my head uncontrollably shakes from side to side. I can't help but smirk. It's hilarious to me that people only become active when tragedy strikes. These issues have been happening IN SILENCE for decades upon decades. It shouldn't take a shooting, a beating, or a game of hunt-to-kill for people to understand that racism is still VERY much alive.

I'm tired of the silence. It shouldn't take people dying for the world to understand that racism never went away and it won't as long as people are silent.

Jade

With the help of my friend Jade we have put together a list of educational material on the topic of racism. Take a look:

Movies and Books:

Django, Unchained
The Help
A Time to Kill
Hidden Figures
Roots
The Color Purple
13th
When They See Us
Dear White People
Malcolm X

Netflix and Amazon have a whole section dedicated to this movement, just search black lives matter

Websites:

8 Everyday Ways to Fight Racism

75 Black Owned Businesses to Support

TIME - 12 Suggested movies to watch to educate yourself about racism and protests, suggested by experts

Educating yourself on the Jim Crow Laws is also suggested as well as mass incarceration (mentioned in the movie 13th) There are many ways we can all educate ourselves on these issues, now all we need to do is take advantage of that and do it!

We can all help make a difference! Let's make the world a place of peace and love! Love the planet, love people, love yourself!

Allow light, love, and peace into your lives!

Namaste, my friends!

xo