This moment of collective awakening: #BlackLivesMatter
Tanya Birl Torres, a teacher and artist I admire called this moment “The Great White Awakening.”
Yes. Thank you for that.
Through my conversations with loved ones and what I'm seeing in the collective sphere, it seems clear that an awakening process is happening for many of us right now -
For some white people and non-BIPOC, it may be a greater or newfound understanding of the pain and reality of what being Black in America is like; what being part of a system that inherently and structurally devalues you because of the color of your skin is like; the health, wealth and power disparities that come from centuries of racial oppression.
For others, as Dr. Cornell West put it in a recent interview with Anderson Cooper, it may be an awakening about this current version of America being a failed social experiment; and the hard truth that our system has proven that it can’t reform itself.
And for others, it’s not about further awakening but about shepherding the awakening of others; and about caring for yourself and those around you as you do so.
For me, it's the continued awakening of how humbling and transformational anti-racism work is. How much it brings me to my knees and invites me to shed layers of cultural ego and more.
We all have our own unique experiences with this moment. Wherever you may be within your process, I want to thank you for showing up to the work and encourage you to keep going.
Below I’m sharing trusted resources for actionable ally-ship, as well as voices and leaders I turn to for anti-racism wisdom.
Anti-racism resources & actionable ally-ship:
Support the protests. Consider donating to Black Lives Matter's global organizing efforts; and check out this Google doc of city-specific bail funds you can support.
Invest in local Black-owned businesses. Check out Intentionalist's database.
Hire Black talent. Tech Inclusion and Black Tech Jobs are great places to look.
Join a workshop. Indivisible's National Activist Call & Pachamama Alliance's Indigenous Wisdom for Modern Times.
Listen to wise leaders. On Being's recent newsletter is full of BIPOC teachers, healers and cultural revolutionaries.
Special thank you to Female Founders Alliance for several of these resources and suggestions.
Hi, I’m Liz Moyer Benferhat. Writer, facilitator, coach, and development practitioner dedicated to the subtle interplay between how inner transformation feeds the outer transformation we need in the world. Welcome 🌿