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Fear of differences, ignorance about other perspectives and fear of perceived change is wrecking havoc and contributing to strong racial divides in the US and other parts of the world. Some people are vocal and proud of being racist. They worry that white people will be in the minority and will take any action to they think will prevent that by ranting in the media, supporting politicians that spout neo-nazi slogans, and even committing acts of violence. They are the most blatant. It takes more than a conversation to change those people. (However groups like “life after hate,” are doing amazing work.)
But these people are not the only contributors to racial divides, and inequity. There are also the people that say the right things and either do nothing or act out of irrational fear.
Too often people use their fear of saying the “wrong thing” as a reason to just stay cloistered among people like themselves. So instead of saying the wrong thing, they do the wrong thing. They talk about ending racism, homophobia and every other ism, from the safety of their own group. The problem is that not venturing out amongst people who are different, prevents us as well-meaning individuals from understanding and developing relationships with other people.
Fear of others can be an impediment to progress and bringing people together across differences. We talk about the divisions in the US and the world. But until we get over our own fears of people who look different, behave different, and think different, we can’t help create the change we want to see. We’ll continue to see more people who are primarily white calling the police on people of color, who are mostly but not all Black. This is really serious because it can lead to arrest, trauma and even death of people of color who are just living their lives. It’s more than just “making a mistake,” it can be deadly.
Justifying these actions, making excuses and weak apologies change nothing.
Moving beyond fear of others is liberating. Finding common ground is unifying and looking for connection can stop hate.
As a white person, I make it my business and responsibility to educate other white people, and bring people together from different backgrounds, races, sexual orientation, etc. But white people only talking to other white people doesn’t make real change in the real world. Going out of our comfort zones, interacting and even saying the wrong thing but finding connection can make the big difference.
We need to create an environment in our homes, workplaces and communities where people are not afraid to question each other and question their own beliefs.
We have to do it together, and not allow the normalization of white supremacy, nazism, hatred and fear. That’s why I love bringing people together in dialogue to stop the fear, increase collaboration, problem solve and even save lives. Join me.
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