Do Your Best
Though it’s technically true of any period of time, right now we are truly living through history. In the midst of a pandemic the Black Lives Matter movement has been gaining traction and people all across the world have been joining forces to protest race based violence and police brutality. For a lot of people, the world has never felt more chaotic and they’ve never felt less in control. Many of us have been left wondering, “what can I do?”, and I think that the answer to that, as always, has to be “your best”.
When I say to people that we need to do our best, I mean it in two ways:
1. If you have the capacity to do more than you are to help a cause but are choosing not to because you find it dull or see it as someone else’s problem, you need to do better.
2. If you have been over-extending yourself engaging with issues to the point where you’re feeling burnt out or even apathetic, you need to recognise and respect your own limits and take time to rest.
In last month’s post I wrote to non-disabled people asking them to please help carry the burden of activism for people like me. This month I am making a similar plea to fellow white people and non-Black people of colour: do your best to use your privilege in a productive way. If you have the time, energy, and mental stability to get involved with causes like Black Lives Matter, do so. Don’t shirk your responsibility to use your privilege for good. And if you find yourself reaching your limit and feeling guilty for not being able to do more, be realistic about your own capacity and don’t beat yourself up over not being super-human.
I have to say though, I am concerned that the weight and value of their own privilege has been lost on many people. There is a huge disparity in the amount of people who have been sharing petitions, donation links, and educational resources, vs the people who posted a single black square on social media for #BlackoutTuesday - the numbers of people who jumped on the black square trend being significantly higher.
I completely understand that not everyone can do everything; I myself have become painfully aware of my own limitations these past few weeks. But it is vitally important that we at least take the time to really evaluate and work out what, if anything, we can do to help - and then follow through. It is crucial that we not only get involved as much as possible, but that we pace ourselves when it comes to advocacy and activism so we have the energy to continue the fight over a longer period of time.
The fight against oppression should never rest solely on the shoulders of the oppressed. So please, do your best.
If you'd like to get involved with Black Lives Matter, here are some links that include lists of petitions, places to donate, reading material, and more. Also, a tip if you're signing petitions on change.org - making an account makes signing petitions so much quicker and easier!
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