Being Responsible With Your Privilege

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With practically everything occurring right now, you're bound to have heard the phrase “white privilege.” The truth is that anyone with lighter skin and other “socially acceptable” traits in America has an automatic advantage. Having privilege is something you can’t help, and you don’t need to feel guilty about having it, however you should focus on is how you use it. People don’t often see it as an issue because if you have it, none of the problems occurring impact you personally. The truth is, regardless, the problems are still occurring for so many people who don’t have privilege and it is privilege people’s job to support them in any way they can! Another important thing to note is that white privilege doesn’t mean that white people don’t struggle, it simply means that your skin will never be a reason for any issue that you encounter.

People with privilege tend to have a larger voice and impact on people that don’t want to listen. It’s an unfortunate case, but the current reality. Before we begin, remember that you should be doing these things ALL THE TIME, it’s not just for the next couple days. Also, a lot of these can apply to everyone, not just people with privilege:

Using Your Social Media:

Post important twitter threads and helpful guides on your social media platforms for more people to see

READ the posts that you see everyone posting. Educating yourself is a huge part of this. Everyone is learning right now.

It’s okay to be learning in front of everyone. If you are afraid to post about anything, know that you’re heart is in one place and being corrected for accidents is okay! Everyone is trying to understand and learn right now, no need to be afraid.

If you see petitions, SIGN them!! and SHARE them!!

If you notice someone from the black community who has a story that isn’t being shared, use your platform to help them

Socially:

If you have any friends/family apart of the black community, reach out to them. Hear their stories and help them spread it. Additionally, be there for them! Be there to support because we are all humans and everyone deserves their entitled rights.

Talk to your friends/family who don’t understand what’s happening right now. Explain to them why using their voice and understanding what is happening right now so important. It might lead to some fights and tears, but if you really believe in the cause, everyone deserves to be able to understand the truth.

Support black businesses!!! Many communities have already compiled lists of black-owned businesses. You can get take-out, shop in their stores, or even just buy gift cards from them for now if you don’t feel safe at restaurants due to COVID-19.

Government/Donating:

Email, call, text, write a letter. There are so many different people that we need to get ahold of right now to demand action. Your voice MATTERS. Here’s a link for one of many email templates you can use. We will post another article with more links. https://l.instagram.com/?u=http%3A%2F%2Ftinyurl.com%2Femailforfloyd%2F&e=ATMCGizU8HTY3FeIJ1_fBjalBCmJz3WJds5tN9evUuzL4Jh5WXaUgrwlW8_CM0rKecKelDo7AU_e-tDyDr4dI1avzEEjqx2oBuMiQQ&s=1

Go to the protests and use your privilege to protect black lives and show support. Here is a link to a twitter thread for staying safe: https://mobile.twitter.com/angelaerin777/status/1266098511172431872?s=21

Sign the petitions and watch the YouTube videos that donate money! Don’t forget to turn of your adblock and watch the ads! Here is a link to a video you can watch: https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=bCgLa25fDHM

Go to clean-ups if you can’t go to protests. These tend to be a lot safer and will ensure less exposure to COVID-19.

That‘s a starting list for now. We just wanted to start the list. It is forever and ongoing and we will continue to add to this through the next couple of days.