Dear reader,
My point of departure on the anti-racism journey was acknowledgement of my White privilege. I learned in the spring of 2020 that I had been unknowingly using my Jewishness as a cover for my Whiteness. In the past I had let myself off the hook intellectually, because I thought, “I’m White, but not like those White people, because I’m Jewish.”
Next, I learned a lesson about centring Whiteness and myself:
At this time, I am firmly in the awareness and analysis phases of the anti-racism journey. I am taking small actions for the time being, with my main focus on teachings and accountability from Black and Indigenous anti-racism educators whom I pay for their work.
As far as diversity, equity and inclusion goes in this space (on my website and in my work), here is my working statement as of 21 September 2020:
I am committed to learning and taking direction toward action and accountability from the anti-racist educators and community with whom I am learning.
I am committed to being uncomfortable, which means initiating difficult 1:1 conversations when I see harm done in my communities.
Embracing discomfort also means I am committed to receiving feedback and giving a full hearing to clients, friends, colleagues and community members who see my privilege in action or see me causing harm and want to call me into dialogue about it, and to determining in dialogue what reparation is needed.
I include in this journey the wider awareness of, and action to address, social justice as a whole. I acknowledge that my efforts to address systems of oppression and my White supremacy and privilege will be imperfect, and I am open to dialogue as above as I strive to address sexism (including diet culture and rape culture), heterosexism, homophobia, transphobia, fat phobia, ageism, ableism, health-ism, classism, xenophobia, religious prejudice, poverty, capitalism and other forms of oppression as they show up in my life and work.
In gratitude,
Shulamit
