General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums100 Ways White People Can Make Life Less Frustrating For People of Color
Kesiena Boom
As someone with very low tolerance for racist bullshit, Ive managed to surround myself with white people who are cognizant of their privilege and strive to make the world a less terrifying and frustrating place for people of color. This means that I often deal with said white people asking me what they can actually do to affect change. So here, anxious allies of the world, are 100 simple ways to be the change. It's not nearly comprehensive, but it's somewhere to start. Go forth and disrupt our harmful racial paradigm!
1. Just because you cant see racism around you doesnt mean it's not happening. Trust people of colors assessment of a situation.
2. Dont assume that all people of color share the same views. We are not a monolith.
3. Dont assume or guess peoples races. This is NOT a fun game for us.
4. If someone tells you theyre from Uganda, dont say, I went to Nigeria once! Just, please.
5. Related: Dont refer to Africa as a country. It's a continent and it's wildly varied. Yes. Take a moment.
6. Oh, and rest assured that literally no person of color ever wants you to get back from holiday, show off your tan and excitedly exclaim, Look, Im almost as dark as you! Cease and desist.
7. Dont assume that a person of color knows everything about their country of heritage. Do you know everything there is to know about America? Germany? Sweden? Thats what I thought.
8. Dont assume we can run if were Black, do math if were Asian, have drinking problems if were indigenous
9. Regard us as autonomous, unique individuals, not as representatives of our race.
10. Dont make embarrassing jokes to try and be down with people of color. Well laugh at you, not with you.
The other 90: https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/ne95dm/how-to-be-a-white-ally-to-people-of-color
InAbLuEsTaTe
(24,128 posts)Thanks for posting btw!!
ProudLib72
(17,984 posts)I was thinking most white people will look at the list and exclaim, "There are 100! Oh man, that's too many to remember. I'm doing fine as I am, so I don't need to worry."
But I have to say that most of them are pretty much common sense.
raven mad
(4,940 posts)Ask an Alaska Native with a story stick. Prepare to sit about 2000 days!
NY_20th
(1,028 posts)raven mad
(4,940 posts)and my friends of color always ask me to bring it to cookouts..............
lunasun
(21,646 posts)10. Dont make embarrassing jokes to try and be down with people of color. Well laugh at you, not with you.
Hey, I'm not even laughing at all usually just groaning behind a fake smile
# 9'is seriously great advice to those asking for it
sheshe2
(84,101 posts)White'splaing
whistler162
(11,155 posts)to act like racxist sh****!
Response to MrScorpio (Original post)
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MrScorpio
(73,631 posts)pintobean
(18,101 posts)it's two continents.
Igel
(35,393 posts)Just as "United States" in Spanish is "estados unidos," and I had one person argue calling the USA just "United States" was a hurtful chauvinist slam against Mexicans proud of their "Estados unidos (mexicanos)". Sadly, that person was a professor and, seriously, should have known something about how language works when spoken by actual people (pretty much regardless of language).
When speaking of "the Americas" you get two continents and never some sort of plural of majesty referring to the US. When speaking of "America," you get a country; speaking of a continent as "America" would be too confusing without context, and in context we wouldn't notice the problem. "North America" is the continent, "Northern America" is part of a country.