As outsiders, many of us are continuing our journeys to understand the insidious nature of systemic racism and how we can contribute to anti-racism movements. We’re reading about, talking about, and trying to understand how to support those who are resisting systemic oppression and insisting that Black Lives Matter. So as we continue learning and taking action for anti-racism, we need to be deliberate and careful about how to educate ourselves.

So far we have shared three other tips in this series on anti-racism:

1. Reflect on your privilege
2. Be humble
3. Understand the power of language

So here’s tip #4: Educate yourself (quietly).

The tragic deaths of Mr. George Floyd, Ms. Breonna Taylor, Mr. Ahmaud Arbory, as well as the recent police shooting of Mr. Jacob S. Blake, and so many other violent attacks of Black people have, rightfully, created significant momentum for people to work together to understand and interrupt systemic racism. Importantly, people are using this momentum to learn about systemic racism and to unlearn history.

The history we were taught in school has often been a biased account of events that has privileged the contributions of White colonizers and settlers while purposefully omitting and attempting to silence and erase the stories, perspectives, and histories of Black people, other racialized people, and Indigenous Peoples. One of the very visible ways this continues is in the on-going celebration of White colonizers and settlers through monuments, in street names and in other ways while the violence of their legacies is minimized and forgotten. Not only, therefore, have we generally been taught this one-sided account of history, at the same time, the contributions, leadership, resistance and oppression of Black people, other racialized people, and Indigenous Peoples are often deliberately left out.

As we continue on our journey of learning about anti-racism, some of us are layering new knowledge on top of knowledge that we have been gaining for decades and applying in our work and lives. Others are just starting to understand the various ways in which they experience privilege, how their privilege directly depends on the oppression of others, and how systems have been built to perpetuate systemic racism in a way that makes the violence and injustice against Black people, other racialized people and Indigenous Peoples seem “normal” and “justified.”

People are in different places in their journey in learning about anti-racism. So in that vein, in this article, I am sharing four tips to keep you moving in the right direction as you continue your anti-racism learning that may just help you avoid criticism along the way.

Be in it for the long haul

First of all, if you’re doing the work to learn more about systemic racism and how to be an anti-racist, well done. Learning about systemic racism is the first step in understanding how we can take action to change systems, institutions and structures to dismantle racism.

The thing is… racism is a deeply embedded system of power and there are many obvious and hidden incentives for those who have benefitted from the oppression of Black, other racialized and Indigenous Peoples to maintain the status quo. Because a significant number of these systems, structures and institutions were built hundreds of years ago on the premise of White supremacy, dismantling racism is a long-term commitment.

In light of this, particularly for those who are new to this cause, it’s important to make a long-term commitment to learning about anti-racism. Rather than just considering reading one book, or a series of articles, or spending a bit of time over the next month or two learning about systemic injustice and anti-racism, consider how you can make a long term commitment to do the work.  Consider how you can make anti-racism learning a regular part of what you think about, read about, and critically reflect on.

We need all kinds of warriors in this fight and we need everyone in it for the long haul.

Choose your experts wisely

As the quest to learn about anti-racism continues, more and more voices are part of the dialogue. In continuing to learn, choose your experts wisely by prioritizing learning about anti-racism from people who are experiencing and resisting racism.

There are so many reasons to prioritize learning about anti-racism from authors, thought leaders and scholars who are members of the community experiencing and resisting racism:

First, these authors, thought leaders and scholars are doing the important work of figuring out how to dismantle systems of racism while living within these systems. They are navigating the dangers of racism in their everyday lives while at the same time theorizing how to dismantle systemic racism.  These thought leaders therefore have important insider perspectives that simply aren’t accessible to those of us who are not members of their communities.

Second, one of the ways systemic racism flourishes is through the silencing and exclusion of those experiencing and resisting racism. Part of why these voices have been silenced and excluded is that they are the voices of people challenging the systems and institutions that uphold White supremacy and the status quo. So these are the very ideas we need to hear in order to understand how the system of racism continues to operate and how it can be effectively dismantled.

Third, actively seeking out, buying books, and learning from authors and thought leaders from communities who are experiencing systemic racism is also a concrete way to take action for anti-racism.  It’s a very practical way to demonstrate your commitment to anti-racism through your actions.  It enables you to walk the walk of anti-racism, instead of just talking the talk.

In making the recommendation to actively seek out thought leaders from communities experiencing systemic racism, my intention is not to minimize the contribution of outsiders who are deeply committed to anti-racism. As I said earlier, we need all kinds of warriors in this fight.  Outsiders are also doing very important work, particularly, when we know about the important need to challenge White solidarity and the code of silence around racism. And so this is not a suggestion to exclude learning from outsiders who are much further along their anti-racism journey as they will have useful ideas and recommendations for concrete action.  Rather, it’s a call to be very deliberate about who you are learning from.

So when I say choose your experts wisely, I mean make an effort to primarily learn from authors, leaders and scholars who are from communities experiencing systemic racism. If you’re learning about anti-Black racism, make a commitment that 80% of what you are reading and learning is written or created by Black authors, thought leaders and scholars. Use the 80-20 rule here as well just like you do in so many areas of your life.

Shhhhhhhhh – Be quiet about your learning

As we continue our journey of learning about systemic racism, there will no doubt be moments of awakening, of clarity – those Oprah Winfrey “ah-ha” moments. An important part of our learning is to reflect, discuss and understand the complex history of systemic racism and anti-racist ideas.

For some people there may be a pull to be very vocal about what they are learning and their outrage about the injustice of systemic racism. And absolutely, feeling outraged is totally justified as you learn more about the history, legacy and on-going impacts of systemic injustice and racism.  As Dr. Marc Brackett clarifies, anger is a reasonable and predictable human emotional response to injustice. (For a great podcast interview on this listen to Brene Brown’s interview of Marc Brackett.)

On its face, it may not seem problematic to express this outrage publicly, for example on social media. But, for those who have been experiencing and resisting systemic racism for their whole lives and whose ancestors have experienced and resisted racism for generations before them, it can be tiring, unsettling and hurtful to realize that so many people who have experienced privilege (mainly White people) have been living their lives unaware of the realities facing Black, other racialized and Indigenous Peoples. This article clearly explains the reasons that this may be seen as performative and why making public “performances” of one’s commitment to anti-racism can divert attention away from actually addressing the roots of systemic racism and injustice.

So by all means learn and continue your long-term commitment to learning about anti-racism. Just be quiet about it as you go.  (And it’s important to note that you will benefit from having constructive spaces to talk about what you are learning, so on that, see the next tip below.)

Find your anti-racist crew

Everyone is at a different point in learning about anti-racism and everyone will process these lessons in different ways. It’s important to have an outlet to discuss what you’re learning because it is through critical reflection and conversations that we learn best. It would be helpful, therefore, to create a space where you and others can discuss what you are learning together.  So find your anti-racist crew.

This will provide you with a forum to share your moments of awakening and the emotions that you are experiencing as you learn about systemic racism with others who are on a similar journey. It will provide a place where you can ask questions and deepen your understanding of systemic racism and anti-racism theories as you move forward.

For me, I have three great forums for doing this:

1. Weekly zoom with my sisters-in-law: I have three amazing female friends from law school (we call each other the “sisters-in-laws” – get it?). We have been friends for twenty years and studied anti-colonial theory together in law school. Since the pandemic started, we have scheduled a regular weekly zoom gathering, which provides us with a way to check in and share how we’re doing. Because of recent events, many of our conversations involve critical discussions relating to anti-racism articles and podcasts. It’s a great forum to clarify ideas and share our reflections on and emotional reactions to what we are reading and learning.
2. Twice weekly family zooms: For anyone who grew up coming over to our house, you would know that the conversations around the dinner table were highly intellectual and often focused on justice and activism. So it probably comes at no surprise that on our twice weekly family zoom calls, which we often talk about anti-racism and systemic racism. This provides a great forum to explore ideas and different perspectives and, frankly, has helped with the ideas in this series on anti-racism. [link to dinner table conversations article]
3. Monthly Anti-Racism Podcast Lunch Club: At work, we recently started a monthly podcast lunch club focused on systemic racism.   Our podcast lunch club discussions are a great forum for us to unpack the complex ideas, problematize them and deepen our knowledge and understanding of the insidious nature of systemic racism and how it relates to anti-colonial struggles.

Having a forum or group that meets regularly to discuss systemic racism and anti-racism theory provides both accountability and an effective way to deepen your understanding of what you’re learning. As you gather your crew, you may want to consider keeping it small to 5-10 people so that everyone actually has a chance to share their thoughts, reflections and questions so that each of you can deepen your individual and collective learning.

So by all means educate yourself,. Make a commitment to keep learning over the long haul. And be quiet and deliberate about when and with whom you discuss your learning.

In keeping with our on-going commitment to anti-racism here at Possibilify, look for an upcoming article on accepting criticism gracefully as an outsider to anti-oppression struggles.

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