those who remain silent in the face of oppression

How Racism and Patriarchy Is Taught at School We won’t simply fold to the silencing and the threats, because there is too much on the line for us. Those in power-or often, simply those with money-do whatever it takes to maintain the power that keeps them comfortable at the expense of marginalizing so many.Īs exhausting as this work is, there are many of us-black women I’m speaking of here-who won’t stop this work. Time and time again my voice has been muffled by those who would rather not be bothered by the conversations around racism-both its gnarled roots, and its modern manifestations.

I’ve had social media posts dedicated to the mental health of black communities reported, and then taken down. I’ve been accused of lying about how white supremacy has shown up in my life as a way to discredit my work. I’ve had my university contacted to “report” me by those seeking to sabotage my academic career. And when I show up in these ways, silencing is something I’ve come to expect. In my own work, I’ve seen it show up again and again when I put out the type of content that agitates-the type of content that is meant make people think deeply about the roles they may play in the problematic dynamic of this country. To escape these truths, silencing has very often been the answer.įor more political op-eds like this, sign up for the Harper's BAZAAR Newsletter. And the people who benefit from those systems have a hard time letting go of their privilege within those realms. Silencing happens when, for white people, hearing the truth is too much when the truth hangs so painfully heavy on their shoulders that they’d rather get rid of the weight, than actually face the issue head on.īut why would something as virtuous as truth be a burden for some? Because when the truth is held up, it reflects the false securities that our society rests on: the elitism, the capitalism, the racism, the ableism, the sexism, the homo/transphobia, the xenophobia, the anti-blackness. Last year during the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing with Jeff Sessions, Senator Kamala Harris was the only senator to be reprimanded by her male colleagues for asking pertinent questions-like whether Sessions had any communication with Russians. It happens to women of color representatives in our own government. It happens to Black Lives Matter activists who are censored by social media algorithms that protect white men. It happened to the black men who took a knee at their NFL games to protest the killing of black bodies at the hands of the police force. 'Silencing happens when, for white people, hearing the truth is too much.'

Those who remain silent in the face of oppression