as someone who went to an HBCU and spent my time around black folk almost exclusively for four years in the center of the Mecca, i want to address a few things that Nepali people seem to bring up a lot these days; things dealing with issues about black solidarity (a thread)

i find myself reading a lot of tweets in my community that are disgusted by the racism prevalent in america, and rightfully so. a french friend once told me that he had never experienced racism until he came to america. whatever he experienced back home seemed mild in comparison.

yes, america is a dreadful place for black people. the police specially always carry an aura of danger and hostility -- because you definitely do get treated differently because of the color of your skin. not even mentioning the mass incarceration the community faces.

the prison system in america is modern slavery and there is no denying it. the odds of being incarcerated for a black person is as high as 1 in 4 in some states. thats crazy. the institutionalized racism present in american soil is mind boggling if you even do a bit of research

and, to show solidarity is important. but that is not what i see in my timeline. nepali people unfortunately live in a bubble; be it here or abroad. some go to prominently white institutions and form their opinions there. most form their opinions without even being abroad

here's what bothers me; how can you speak for a community you haven't even met, let alone understand? you live in a bubble: in nepal, the internet, and abroad, in your comfortable 'white' spaces. most views you have on black people are given through a lens

and this lens if that of the oppressor, of what a white person thinks a black person feels. it is disconnected from the actual black experience. it is righteous for the sake of being righteous, and that is entirely reflected on most 'takes' on this subject

a common thing of discussion is the use of the n-word by nepalese people. i can promise you most of the black community doesn't care. as i mentioned, their problems are way worse than the use of the word by some third world residents. their lives are at stake back home.

another issue is the problematic approach to solidarity of calling people out for not being allies to the black community. but is this really solidarity? or is this just the symptom of an 'holier-than-thou' attitude?

no, the black community is not your scapegoat for proving to people online that you're 'one of the good ones'. your fighting with your peers is entirely selfish. that is not solidarity. you are falling into the white savior complex, and that is justified because>

a) you only have a white persons opinion on black politics, and b) it is difficult to get accurate representations of communities on the other side of the world to form valid opinions. and that is okay.

as long as you critically form your own opinions, and are open to changing them based on new information, i commend your efforts. otherwise, if you refuse to listen and continue to shout inside your bubble, don't get mad when no one takes you seriously

because thats what a bubble does. it prevents growth. it creates echo chambers. its comfortable, but it wont make you a good person. you need to get out and educate yourself before you say anything about an issue you are not familiar with.