Racism

The biggest shock to me about George Floyd’s murder is just how surprised so many Americans are. To me that means one thing, they haven’t been paying attention. Honestly, I’m angry that people are suddenly outraged when African Americans have been treated inhumanely for, literally, centuries.

For a lot of Americans, MLK Day is just a day off of work. For me, it’s a whole lot more. See, these two kids of mine already experience racism and discrimination on a consistent basis. I’ve witnessed it. I’ve been a part of it. Today, I hope we can all take a minute to be introspective about the state of our country and the way we treat our people.

Yesterday, the day when many people chose to be silent in solidarity and to amplify Black voices, I spoke out. It’s not that I don’t support Black voices, I absolutely do. I will be sharing Black voices on my social media and blog now and moving forward. However, as a white mom to bi-racial children, I feel I must be vocal. My kids’ futures depend on it.

I’ve seen so many friends, influencers, and acquaintances posting online lately. They want to know how to be an ally in #blacklives matter.

Please don’t touch my kids’ hair. Please tell your children that touching Black people’s hair is not ok. So, you are probably wondering why I’m writing about this, and why this is an issue. I’m sure the average white person has never thought about it, never considered it, because it doesn’t affect them. But it’s never OK to touch a Black person’s hair, and even if you ask, it’s still not ok (although at least a bit more polite). So here’s the story.