if you’re a white (or white passing) person who is an ally to #BLM but feels frustrated that black people appear to not want/deny your support, please read this.

if you’re a black person who is distrustful of white allies in BLM, you might want to read this too.

i see a lot of white ppl saying things like “black ppl, we understand you, we see you” only to be shut down by black ppl who tell them they don’t really understand. it causes frustration with well meaning whites bc whether they stand with us or step back, they’re met with ire.

this is understandably upsetting for white people, bc it appears that we ask for help and recognition and then when it’s time to receive it, it’s rejected and that white person is told to stay in their lane.

that’s how it appears, but that’s not what’s happening.

the second slavery was abolished, white america began the crusade to hunt black people extinction. if this sounds like an exaggeration to you, i promise you it isn’t.

lynchings, jim crow, segregation, war on drugs and now, BLM. we have been fighting for our rights for lifetimes.

we have been legally living in “freedom” for 66 years. sixty six. that’s how long it’s been since segregation was ended. my parents were born into segregation. it’s easy to pretend that legal discrimination against blacks and other PoC was sons ago, but it is very recent.

this means that the fallout from these historically violent periods of american history has not finished, in many ways, but most publicly and relevantly in the racism systemically woven into out police and justice system.

so by now it’s like “duh” right? like

“of COURSE black ppl have had it rough in america. that’s why i, white person who is an ally, wants to help! but every time i do, black ppl tell me i can’t and say they don’t trust me because i’m white. which is racist and counterproductive”

(^ this sounds like an exaggeration but i saw a white person with this take this morning, which is what prompted me to write this in the first place)

allyship is not the desire to help just leftist black ppl on social media who hype you up for tweeting something with “” in it. its not a badge or a cookie, its a fundamental understanding that our govt, police, and countrymentreat black ppl with less regard than animals.

it’s an unwavering belief that we should not be killed for the color of our skin. all of us. even those you argue with on social media, or those who you don’t get along with. if your allyship is dependent on you receiving positive acclaim from black people, you are not an ally.

this sounds simple enough, but the amount of white people i’ve seen flip script and change their views on supporting BLM, solely bc a black person in their mentions said something like “you will never underrated what we are going through” is terrifying.

if you’re a black person who feels that white allyship is an issue to BLM, let’s look at it another way.

at its core, this is a race issue, but this can also be seen as a national issue. this is not to discredit our experience, but to broaden the scope.

i am an american. i was born in this country, my parents were born here, my grandparents were born here. i don’t want to live in a country where systemic racism affects my current and future family/loved ones. white allies feel the same way.

our white allies didn’t ask to be born into the race that gets to slide under the radar anymore than we asked to be born in the race that is historically opppresed. but we need them. the abolishment of systemic racism is good for all for america. every one of us.

so, please be patient with each other.

white allies, understand that years of oppression and discrimination has left black ppl with a natural discomfort to white ppl in “our” spaces. please recognize your allyship is dependent on your beliefs and not survival like it is for us.

black ppl, please recognize that if we were capable of winning this fight alone, we would’ve. there is much work to do, but we must be ready to trust others with our history. be more open minded to the possibility that white ppl may not be as tone deaf as it’s easy to believe.

and that’s it. drink water, stay the fuck home and wash your hands dumb dumbs