I have to admit something. And it's something I wouldn't normally admit, but because I am in social work school and social justice class I think... it's time to get real.
I feel guilty.
There, I said it. I feel like I pulled the trigger.
I have not acknowledged Michael Brown and the shooting in Ferguson. Sure, I talked about it with my husband and my parents... we agreed that it is awful. That it's so sad that racial profiling still exists in America. I haven't spoken to my friends about it, nor Facebook. I haven't signed any petitions or taken any action.
So, perhaps I am not the oppressor. But by allowing racial violence to happen and not even whisper, "no!" am I actually approving Michael Brown's death? And what about Trayvon? And all the thousands before him? What about the thousands of black people that were lynched right here in North Carolina not so long ago? Why are we, as a people, not FURIOUS?
It breaks my heart. That so many have died. That I have no idea what it's like to be a minority in America. That peace has not yet come.
Silence may be okay for some people. But I do not intend to live my life asleep to the injustices in our world. Nor do I intend to be a "coffee shop anarchist", who perhaps is awake but frozen in their own fear. You're going to hear me roar.
In high school, I was an activist. I knew in my heart that I could stop the Iraq War, with the help of the other members of the protest movement. I started an organization at my school, I traveled to Washington D.C. The day the war started, I lost something. Hope. It has taken me a long time to get that back.
When we admit defeat, we are allowing the system (corporate America, our government, greed) to continue feeding the injustices. They continue to grow, to take new forms.
Activism is anger, made into positive action. Social justice is not a quick fix. It is a conversation. Let's talk about it.
A Cherokee elder was teaching his grandchildren about life.
He said to them, “A fight is going on inside me… it is a terrible fight between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, hatefulness, and lies. The other stands for joy, peace, love, hope, humbleness, kindness, friendship, generosity, faith, and truth. This same fight is going on inside of you, and inside every other person, too.”
The children thought about it for a minute.
Then one child asked his grandfather,
“Which wolf will win?”
The Cherokee elder replied…
“The one you feed.”
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