Candace Owens' Strength & Denial: an Analysis of her Stance on Racism

 Candace Owens is a political commentator. It seems as though many learned her name when a video she made went viral after George Floyd's death, which is the first time I ever heard of her. In her video, she criticized the African American community, basically, for bringing glory to George Floyd, as he had a criminal record. She read his criminal record that she had researched in what seemed to be an attempt to influence people to stop celebrating/mourning/bringing attention to him. The video was well received and circulated by many members of the white community who perhaps felt accused by the whole situation. Her voice basically said that change was not necessary, racism was not at play, and everyone should stop making a hype out of it. 

On the other hand, she was criticized by many in the African American community and beyond for supporting and encouraging racism deniers, and was assumed by some to be monetarily motivated or seeking attention. I know when I first saw the video, I was angry and did not watch it in its entirety. However, I think there is powerful insight in this analysis that may help bridge the gap between those who deny that racism is a problem that should be addressed, and those who know that it must be addressed until it is no longer a problem. Let's put aside the idea that Candace was simply paid off for a minute in order to consider some other points. 

Among other things, Candace misused the word martyr in this video. She said she would not hold Floyd up as a martyr. I saw another video critiquing her video, which read the definition of a martyr, as someone who voluntarily gives their life for a cause. The man corrected her in saying that George Floyd was a catalyst, but in no way a martyr, as he did not voluntarily give his life. She also, although I don't think it was her main intention, encouraged the mentality that police brutality is excusable if the victim was "a bad person", which misses the fact that the police officer often doesn't know the victim's criminal record and these things also happen to people with no record at all. It is overreach and it is dangerous. Candace has apparently also criticized or blamed victims of police brutality who did not have criminal records. 

I later came across another video where Candace Owens adamantly opposed the mention of white supremacy in some sort of political conversation where she represented the Republican party. She did not see it as a pressing issue at all and felt as though bringing it up was an attempt to create division. Many also shared a video where Morgan Freeman stated that the way to stop racism was to stop talking about it. (While that video was shared a lot after George Floyd's death, here's one that shows that despite what he said in that video, Morgan Freeman does feel the need to talk about racism. Took about two seconds to find as I was actually looking for the one where he said that people should stop talking about it). 

I have to say, I understand the point being made. I understand why some people of all races are annoyed at the topic and may not want to discuss it. Sometimes we humans can overanalyze things. Sometimes we make too much hype over things and the hype can create problems of its own. I also understand wanting to empower groups who have been victimized and that having a "pick yourself up and keep going" attitude rather than a defeated one may be more productive. (At the same time, there's much more to say about that, as I strongly believe that thorough healing is the only way for an individual or group to really pick up and reach full potential). People also tend to have a habit of forgetting progress that has been made (in all things, not just this topic), and can lose perspective, not realizing their own privileges, especially from a global perspective. All of these are points to keep in mind. 

However, I agree with what I heard Phil Vischer say in one of his podcasts. If something is indeed present and is problematic, since when was not talking about it a solution? Is it productive to simply not talk about a drug problem? Is it wise to not talk about a water shortage? Just as "not talking about it" wouldn't be real solutions to those problems, it isn't fully with this one either. 

My real motivation for this post is that I watched a very interesting TED talk that Candace Owens did in 2016 before Donald Trump became president and before she even supported him, I believe. I recently saw a Facebook post where someone refused to celebrate Kamala Harris as the first female V.P., criticized her, (which I touched on in my last blog post), and mentioned that Candace Owens was a better role model. My initial thought was that those two people are not comparable because Candace Owens is simply a political commentator, whereas Kamala Harris served as the attorney general of California and on the Senate before becoming V.P. But anywho, in investigating Candace Owens a little more, I came across this TED talk. 

This TED talk is about how technology and media has allowed for the rapid spread of information, and how that can lead to a false/oversimplified and trendy sort of activism. It also touches on how people say certain things they wouldn't normally say when they are not speaking to someone face to face. Candace shares a story about when she was in high school, she received a series of voice mails from four different male voices threatening to torture and kill her and her family, calling her mean names, and also mentioning heroes from the African American community like Rosa Parks and Dr. King, saying that they are dead. Her school called the police and it turns out that one of the voices was the governor of Connecticut's son. Her face was all over newspapers around the state, and it was quite traumatizing for her. Arrests were eventually made. Afterwards, she struggled through five years of anorexia which she says was directly caused by the events during her senior year in high school. 

My thoughts were, how could someone who went through that say that racism is not a problem? What happened to her is a prime example of the existence and harms of racism. It's interesting if you pay attention. She refers to her attackers, who were eventually arrested, as children, and basically says that the problem was not racism, but that so many others made such a big deal out of it. I found that very interesting, and similar to her attitude toward Donald Trump. She's forgiving of his meanness, but unforgiving of the reaction to it. So with that being said, I think she's missing the mark, although I still appreciate some of what I think is behind her evaluation of these people and situations. 

Again, putting accusations of alterior motives aside, I think behind her denial of racism are thoughts such as, "This is not how things should be. I should not be seen by some as different or less valuable. I am just as smart and beautiful and worthy of a human being as anyone else. I will not even entertain these ideas and don't want anyone else to either. They are merely words."  

Just as this insight into a pre-Trump supporting Candace shows that she was a victim of undeniable and harmful racism, it also shows that she has some sort of a denial or illogical interpretation of it all. How could she have struggled with anorexia for five years as a result of the attack, but not see that the primary culprits are the attackers and their hateful mindset? That is faulty logic. Or perhaps she had not finished processing the whole thing when she did this talk, or even now. I think she could have a powerful voice for the black community, rather than the white community, or could even help to bridge the gap of misunderstanding there, if she at least addressed the realities of racism, rather than trying to deny them completely or brush them under the rug. 

I have seen her address the black community as "emotional" and again, while I appreciate the notion of "toughen up" as a means of rising above, I simultaneously don't believe that the hardening of hearts to compromise with hardened hearts is the ideal direction we should go in. She has also been accused of taking advantage of the NAACP who this article claims backed her in reaching a settlement in the situation she explains in her TED talk. Along with her refusal to face racism for what it is, she has been found to display an insensitive thought pattern, with unthoughtful comments about Hitler, also shown in the linked article.  

In reference to the idea of not giving racism much attention as a strategy, I would say that I've observed a somewhat similar attitude from my husband, being a Haitian immigrant living in the Dominican Republic where racism and nationalism have also been issues. He does not deny racism, but he has never dwelled on the issue or given it much weight at all. I have seen other acquaintances of color in the U.S. say or post things in response to the events of 2020 such as, "I haven't ever experienced racism. I have chosen not to see it." With this, they don't negate that it exists, but admit that they have ignored it. 

I respect this and think it shows a confidence and strength. However, I don't think it's realistic or productive to negate the existence of something like this completely, especially when not everyone has as much mental strength and confidence as others, (or perhaps privilege). I know I for one enjoy a physical challenge, but turn into butter under emotional attack! It is also impossible to ignore when the effects of the problem are built into systems such as the criminal justice system. Reform demands attention. 

Details are important. History is important. Treating others as we want to be treated is important. Realizing our privileges is important. Using our privileges to serve and share blessings is important. I have come to enjoy the work of Jemar Tisby, an African American author who is also president of an organization called The Witness: A Black Christian Collective that aims to train and raise up the next generation of Black Christian leaders. They have a two year fellowship available for five individuals, providing $50,000 anually. He has written a New York best-seller called The Color of Compromise and just published a new book called How to Fight Racism. 

And of course, even quicker than ordering and reading a whole book, I really like this Phil Vischer video that goes deeper into his first video about Race in America. It answers questions about statistics regarding the black family, the welfare system, mentions communal sin and repentance, ("but I didn't personally do anything"), and gives an example of how his mom used her privilege to help another family out. "Not a savior, but an ally". 

Blackout book reviews

Candace Owens has also published a book which talks about the black family and the welfare system. Again, I think she is missing the mark a bit, and lacks some necessary sensitivity, but perhaps her point of view shouldn't be thrown out completely. You can tell that just as her George Floyd video had drastically different reactions, largely correlated to the viewers' skin color, her book reviews show the same, drastic split. While this bar graph doesn't report the demographics of the reviewers and political party probably comes into play as the book clearly favors one party, the majority of the 571 people who wrote Amazon reviews gave it either 5 stars or 1 star.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. If you appreciate Candace Owens and what she has to say, I hope you will consider her apparent denial of an overt act of racism that caused her years of serious struggle, as she herself shared. Thanks for reading and please share thoughts in the comments! 

Comedian Ryan Davis responded to Candace's infamous George Floyd video. 

"Talk to your brothers and sisters in this country and ask them what they've been through, and if what they go through makes you uncomfortable, then stand with them to change that. Don't deny their experiences just because you don't know what it's like to go through that. You're not helping anybody by finding every reason not to help people."

 

In the above video from 2019, Candace and Black Lives Matter NY chairman Hawk Newsome debate/discuss their views of what challenges the black community faces and what the best solutions are. I found this extremely insightful and interesting. I really appreciate Hawk Newsome, and Candace sure is well spoken, though she continues to negate the experiences of many. It seems as though she didn't really respect what Hawk had to say and what he stood for as she went onto make the George Floyd video and also publish insensitive comments after Ahmaud Arbery's death. 

Candace: If your issue is police brutality, why not make it a movement about the things that go wrong in the police? 

Hawk: Here's the thing, when black people get their rights, everybody gets rights. You know history. When we got the right to vote, everybody got the right to vote. When we got the right to sit at the front of the bus, everybody got it. When we got to go to college, everybody got to go. We are the trailblazers. Not only do we set trends in culture, in music, in fashion, but also in law. Like, this is what we do, so let us kick this door in.

Wonderfully Woven

Misunderstood don't gotta be explained

But you don't understand me, so let me explain

- Lil Wayne, Misunderstood

Lil Wayne is a potty mouth, but he also has some beautiful songs and lyrics. He has emerged as an African American man who says he has not experienced racism and asks others to question situations without jumping to conclusions that race was an issue. While I appreciate his advice that no one should be too quick to jump to conclusions about conflict being rooted in racism, there are plenty of voices from the black community sharing different experiences, like THIS ONE that recently happened close to my hometown in Virginia. (Capital letters used to show that there is a link.) 

Out of all of the signs and memes I have seen regarding race issues over these past two weeks, this one may explain a situation that seems to be misunderstood the best. 

The confusion on this is something I have never understood. I used to hear people complain about affirmative action. Some are now defensive when they see Black Lives Matter. This little girl breaks it down so clearly. She says, "We just need your help with #blacklivesmatter for black lives are in danger!" 

Vandalism isn't pleasant. Looting and violence are horrible. Disrespect to undeserving police officers doesn't help. Let's all listen to this sweet little girl rather than continuing in a war with those things. 

Many people would say that black lives are not in danger. That is a thing of the past. While they would agree that the death of George Floyd was clearly horrible and the officer should be charged with a crime, they may still say things like, "that could've easily been a white man that the police killed" or "I can't judge any situation when I didn't see all of the circumstances leading up to it". "He had a criminal record." "He was high".

To that, I would say you are missing the point. There is no reason for police forces not to practice tactics that have been proven to reduce these situations. THIS SITE shows what these best practices are, and where they have and have not been adopted. Additionally, there is no reason for the country to not strongly and seriously consider diverting resources from policing vulnerable neighborhoods, setting expectations for the presence of criminals, to other efforts such as mentoring vulnerable neighborhoods, setting standards for growth and excellence. The latter is what is being pleaded for when "defunding the police" is mentioned. 

I would also say that some of those comments listed two paragraphs above could create groupthink, which is when people feel a certain amount of certainty over an idea because they hear many people in their groups saying it and supporting it. Groupthink causes groups to make poor decisions. What we don't want is for a jury to judge these cases with bias, making the statement that the killings are excusable. 

The history of white men and sometimes women, both police and civilians, being excused or given very light punishments after killing a black person is what has caused all of this. I hope everyone will consider that. You may not agree with the extent of the problem, or feel as though it is being exaggerated, but no one can close their eyes to the fact that all of this emotion did not come from nowhere. 

Therefore, everyone must be careful to keep from contributing to those unjust rulings on these present cases, as well as on anything that could happen in the future. We must realize that when we are too forgiving of those who happen to look like us, we are actually condemning other groups, and that only adds to the problem. If you don't think that I am right in saying that, just look at Ahmaud Arbery's case. Months after he was killed while innocently jogging by people who were not even police and no arrests were made until a video made it to the public. When I first found out, I upheld faith in the system and blamed the lack of arrests on the coronavirus chaos. However, many factors and conversations made me conclude otherwise. If the coronavirus wasn't too chaotic for an arrest of George Floyd to be made for allegedly counterfeit money, it surely wasn't too chaotic for the arrest of Arbery's murderers. 

Some are just bothered by the conflict. They don't want to deal with the situation. They would rather just say it doesn't exist. That, unfortunately, doesn't work either. The sooner we collectively face it, the closer we are to making it less of an issue. 

The changes proposed by the reasonable protestors (recognizing that not all protestors are reasonable) don't necessarily have to be a drastic change. This does not mean that police presence would be immediately and completely removed and anarchy would exist. That claim is polarized and creates unnecessary division. Pilot projects can be executed, and already have been. Camden, NJ, FOR EXAMPLE, made some of these changes and saw a 42% decrease in crime. Whether or not this is a perfect example, can we examine it, learn from it, and try new things? Change can be implemented with caution, gradually. But this is simply what Black Lives Matter is asking for. I see absolutely no harm that moving in this direction would have on anyone. In fact, if executed responsibly, it would surely be positive for everyone.  

So if you have been complaining about this movement that has been embraced all over the United States and even many parts of the world, it is time to give in to this cute little girl, whose name I wish I knew. She, like all of us, was fearfully and wonderfully made, woven together in her mother's womb by the Creator. (Psalms 139:13-14) You don't have to donate to the cause or go out and protest, but just understand what she is saying and be sensitive to it. 

We know that this is a cause that is not going to be forgotten. It must be respected and given proper attention. This isn't about political party. It's time for everyone to give in, compromise, and unite again. Only then can the true delinquents that are looting and using violence be efficiently recognized and dealt with. And when they are, they will stop taking advantage. 

Check out these wonderfully woven dolls, representing an array of racial beauty. These
dolls are designed by my good friend Nicole Plata, made with the help of local girls here in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. Nicole designed them, realizing that there were barely any dolls in this country that accurately represent the children here with varying skin tones. We are selling these dolls as a fundraiser for a school here that is in danger of closing its doors. This is the school that Project Esperanza has come to grow a trusting relationship with, and is where we send our top students for high school, as it is within walking distance of our school.

After 35 years of excellent academic performance and dedication to small, manageable classrooms, the school is down on its luck because of a greedy landlord and the difficulties brought on by the covid lockdown. Your PURCHASE OF A DOLL can help SAVE THIS SCHOOL. 

Thank you for your help by either chipping in, sharing, or both. At the very least, let's work together to resolve these problems at hand. If I can look past Lil Wayne's incredibly dirty and offensive words and find his flashes of brilliance, his touching, truthful language, then I think everyone can do that in some way in order to work together toward a common cause for humanity. As it says on the Haitian flag, "L'Union fait la force" which means "Unity is strength". 

And I just want you to know

That you deserve the best

You're beautifuuul

You're beautiful

Yeah, and I want you to know

You're far from the usual

-Lil Wayne, How to Love

Oakland, CA

Photo taken by Beth Laberge 

Black Lives Matter: From Emotion to Strategy and Solutions

Opened my history book to take a better look

At where we came from and where we’re going

Without a sense of time

You’ve got no ears or eyes

I see a broken rhyme called human learning

You know this is serious

We’re repeating things we’ve done

Do ya wanna be a part of the solution?

-Solution by Paul Colman Trio

I spent many years finding out about world events long after they happened. I have lived in the Dominican Republic for 12.5 years. I am busy and removed with a large family, work, and studies. However, we’ve been on lockdown here since March 18^th and I have been paying more attention to the news due to the coronavirus. It is amazing and interesting how the topics that spread through my social media feed change daily.

I am very glad that I have been so attentive to world events; especially U.S. events because so many of my family, friends, and contacts on social media are in the U.S. I was shocked and heartbroken by the announcement of the murder of Amaud Arbery while innocently jogging, especially since his murderers were not yet arrested at the time of the announcement. I was in disbelief when I learned of the horrific murder of George Floyd so soon after the arrests of the Amaud’s murderers were finally made.

The events that took place the days following George Floyd’s death were very revealing. I am specifically referring to the fact that the four officers, while they were fired, were not arrested right away

after such a brutal murder was caught on film. A CNN reporter who happened to be black was arrested while reporting the protests. The words spoken by the president in reference to the riots, especially when compared to words he spoke about white armed protestors in Michigan during the coronavirus lockdown exposed incredible bias.

 I think it’s safe to say that many who were not convinced that racism is still an issue in the United States and that the police brutality used specifically toward black and brown people deserves serious attention now see differently. I feel hopeful for future change that will be taking place, but there is work to be done to bring it about.

First of all, let me address something that will probably be important for many to consider my thoughts on this issue. I am a white woman. I was born and raised in Virginia. I moved to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic permanently when I was 22 years old, having recently graduated from Virginia Tech. My husband is a black man from Haiti. We have three biological children and two adopted children.

As I mentioned, I have lived in the Dominican Republic for 12.5 years now. I have not lived in the U.S., and have honestly not spent many days there at all, throughout all of Obama’s terms and Trump’s. My race causes me to be a minority here in the Dominican Republic. To racially describe the Dominican Republic in a nutshell, it was the first place Columbus landed in the New World and was settled by Spain. They kidnapped people from Africa and enslaved them, but when slavery ended, the races became very mixed. The population that would be considered white in this country is very small. The population displays a beautiful array of skin color shades and there is no shame in calling someone by their skin color (indio, moreno, rubio, negro, kle, wouj, etc.) The race of the neighboring country Haiti is primarily what we would call black. If you haven’t studied Haitian history, I highly suggest that you do.

I have met many white friends here through Project Esperanza.

Line of white protestors stand between police
and non-white protestors.

However, they don’t live here. They visit. So on a daily basis, I am the odd one out in that way. I don’t usually even see someone that America would refer to as white, other than perhaps tourists in passing. My kids used to point and say “Look! Volunteers!” whenever they saw white people. I may be referred to as gringa in Spanish or blan in Creole. I have had to correct people many times and let them know how I feel when they talk about blan or gringos. I think about things I say and am held accountable if I say something that offends someone.

This isn’t to say that I have walked in the shoes of an African

American woman who grew up in the United States. I have surely not. I realized that I was unfairly privileged for many reasons in addition to race while I was growing up and felt guilt over the issue. This is largely why I wanted to use my privilege to serve situations that broke my heart.  Nonetheless, I do think I have some insight that I would like to share and engage in dialogue about. 

As I said, I’ve noticed that social media themes change daily. Yesterday and today I see that many are questioning rioting and how effective it is or was in this case. People are comparing Civil Rights Movement protests that were peaceful, strategically planned, and completely respectable, to the chaos of looting and burning. Perhaps only God knows if the rioting hadn’t taken pace, whether the killer would’ve even been arrested, and whether other factors would’ve changed in addition. Yes, it’s sad that rioting took place and is still taking place. However, war is always sad, isn’t it? War is a result of groups of people that were not able to effectively communicate and reach an agreeable compromise. Additionally, many people are just taking advantage of anarchy, which wasn't the intent of most protestors and isn't their fault. 

What are you going to do to protect your city from these problems that could lead to rioting, if it hasn't already? The ONLY humane solution is to effectively communicate and reach agreeable compromises on a consistent basis. The responsibility here is on

each city’s leadership to initiate this process. Take a knee and engage the people rather than shooting tear gas and rubber bullets, (both literally and figuratively). However, where this doesn’t happen, churches, schools, and organizations exist and can initiate such communication. The bottom line is that this is not the responsibility of the black community to make themselves heard. There have been plenty of cries. I particularly teach my kids that whenever they hear someone cry, they should ask what's wrong. It doesn't matter if that person cries a lot and you are used to hearing him or her cry. It doesn't matter if the person even hurt themself. You cannot hear someone cry without asking what is wrong. Every single time they cry. It’s each community’s job as a whole to reach out to the black community and listen with opened minds and hearts. The insight provided will show the direction in which each community needs to go to create needed change.

This site (www.mappingpoliceviolence.org) provides statistics about police violence in the U.S. Simple practices such as requiring the reporting of any use of force, ban of chokeholds or strongholds, and requiring other officers to intervene if another officer uses excessive force drastically change statistics. A Canadian friend recently informed me that in Canada, a report must be filed

whenever a police takes his or her gun out of their holster. This practice puts weight on the very act of taking out a gun, AS IT SHOULD. There are things that can be done. Sources say that progress was being made in this area during the Obama administration, but went in the opposite direction under Trump's direction. READ ONE SOURCE HERE.

And then there are cases such as George Floyd’s where the gun was not the lethal weapon. However, the killer and an accomplice had quite poor records with many red flags raised. I have to agree with my brother Matthew McHale who posted:

“We have a system designed to protect police at all costs whether they behave correctly or not. It gives them a sense of being above

the law. It should be the opposite. They should be held to a higher standard than the public given the power they are wielding. Any abuse of power should be harshly punished and not tolerated.”

My friend Maryann Glascock stated, “I think it’s just far too easy to get a badge and a gun with all the authority in the world. Police officers are public servants and we pay their salaries through our taxes. I think we need to increase police officer salaries to hire more qualified people or use the money to provide more training to the people they are hiring. I’d be happy to see my tax dollars going towards that”.

When one examines how funding toward law enforcement is allocated, it probably wouldn't be necessary to ask taxpayers to increase anything in order to pay police more in order to recruit higher qualified individuals. It would simply be a matter of diverting money spent on weapons and potentially excessive police presence toward salaries. The Black Lives Matter campaign is leading a petition for police defunding. If you READ HERE, what that really means is a diversion of funds from investments such as "military hardware" and allocating those funds toward after-school programs, mentoring, and other preventative efforts.  

I agree with all of those points. I also feel strongly that there should be a campaign to recruit minorities into the police force. I understand that those who feel targeted by the police are reluctant to become police officers themselves. Black police officers are criticized by other people of color for choosing that profession. However, this is creating more of a problem than a solution. If there was a black police officer on the team that set out to arrest George Floyd, do you think things would’ve gone down the same way?

Rather than criticizing black or brown police officers, the black community and the community as a whole should celebrate them, thank them, and let them know that they are heroic in many ways. After all, police officers do risk their lives. We know that not only do police officers kill people sometimes, but they sometimes get killed as well.

I imagine images flying around of black or brown police officers and black or brown children dreaming of becoming police officers. “This is my community. I will uphold and protect it.” There should
be a sense of ownership and pride over the community. This should be a point of dialogue. If there is not that sense of community, then why not? What can be done to change that? Incentives should be developed as have been developed for the army where special scholarships or other benefits should be granted for people of color who will serve as a police officer for a certain number of years, and other such incentives. Priority should be placed on this! Of course white police officers would be jealous as with any affirmative

Protestors protect a cop who
got lost from the others. 

action but that shouldn’t be a reason not to do it.

Let me now say that anyone in the black or brown community feeling discouraged, exhausted, fearful, etc. should know this.  You may not benefit from white privilege, but you are so very privileged. I say this not to belittle anyone's feelings or to ask them to stop complaining or protesting. Share and protest (peacefully) all you want! I support you! I say this to share a truth that I can see from a different perspective as someone outside of the U.S. which some people may forget or not be fully aware of.

I am very sympathetic to and heartbroken by these recent cases. I have lost lots of sleep this past week thinking, reading, and talking about it. However, the truth is that I often brush off issues in the United States as “first world issues”. You think your public schools are bad? You think your minimum wage is low? You think your low income communities have it rough?

Being an American citizen, no matter where you are on the unfair spectrum, is a HUGE privilege. Nowhere else in the world attracts immigrants like the United States, and many cannot get in, even illegally. As a citizen, you have access to so many benefits, including student loans, loan forgiveness programs, welfare if needed, public education through high school absolutely accessible to all, and the list goes on! To put this into perspective, many of the youth I work with have

missed years of school because no public education was available to them and their family couldn’t afford private education. READ MORE HERE. In 2013, the highest court here ruled that Haitian immigrants that had been in the country for up to four generations would potentially have their citizenships removed, depending on the migration status of their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. Minimum wage in this country is $200 per month for someone working 44 hour work weeks. These are just a few examples.

Additionally, having English as your native language is a privilege. I have a strong advantage with many online work opportunities I have done and looked into because of this privilege. However, I fully understand that just as a child who grows up in a loving, united lower class family may turn out more well-rounded and have a happier life than a rich kid who has a lot of toys and gadgets, but a cold family life, the effects of feeling like the underdog or whipping boy in society can be emotionally debilitating, keeping groups of people from reaching their potential despite available opportunities. Some would even say they feel as though society hates them. It’s a complex issue. And please don't think that by mentioning these benefits available to American citizens that I don't acknowledge all that has been denied to black American citizens throughout history since the Civil Rights Movement and the struggle it has been. The recent events are just a sample of proof that was made visible to the world, representing centuries of the same cold heartedness. 

Although the oppression still goes on, as has been witnessed so clearly lately, we shouldn't lose sight of the progress that has been made through the Civil Rights Movement. There are many amazingly successful African Americans in the United States. Two of my personal favorites who I’ve watched and loved since I was little are Oprah Winfrey and Will Smith. How many black Americans have become millionares through professional sports? Do we realize what a small percentage of the world has such an opportunity? While there is still work to be done before we can say that true equality is being practiced in the U.S., no one should let the horrific stories like George Floyd’s take away from the countless successes. And as they say, we're not going backwards.

Therefore, in reference to black and brown readers, if you can keep a global perspective, you may feel more encouraged by remembering that despite what it may look like in your home town, you are actually on top of the world! You also could consider spending time in or even relocating to a country like the Dominican Republic where your race would not make you a minority. Project Esperanza would love to have you as a short term volunteer, or even serve as a year or two as volunteer coordinator. 

In response to the George Floyd case, black Americans who have relocated here were posting about how grateful they are that they had done so as they don’t face the same fears of police brutality

here. And for any white Americans that would like to remain in the majority with these changing times where whites will likely no longer be the majority within the next few decades, you could consider going somewhere like Australia. I suggest this (and don't actually expect anyone to even take it seriously but you never know) because it's an English speaking country that is not too cold and there is a strong white majority. The point is, there is surely no changing the direction that the U.S. is going. The only choice is to embrace it. 

Anyone who is offended by the light suggestion of relocating should realize their American privilege right there. Do we deserve to stay in this promised land we call the U.S.A. generation after generation? Did we ourselves build it? Rather than fighting to keep others out and maintain it a certain way, why don't we explore other parts of the world and share our best practices? CHECK OUT MY TEDx TALK for more thoughts on this. 

For anyone at all wanting to teach their kids about race issues, I highly suggest watching the Netflix series Family Reunion.  There are a few episodes that deal with police brutality, reporting the officer, and consequences for the officer, starting on Episode 10. However, the whole series is great. MORE ON THAT TOPIC HERE.

It’s encouraging that so many are taking a stand and showing they

MLK's tomb site during a protest taken
by Project Esperanza
board member Edna May Hermosillo.

care by at least speaking up on social media. I hope and pray that the follow-up remains strong and these cases are seen through. If the murderers of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd don’t get a just punishment, then a lot of the efforts put forth so far will have been in vain. Also, we have to continue to share insightful information with others. Racism isn’t something we recognize when it’s never challenged and those who are in very homogenous groups can benefit from these insights that they might not be exposed to otherwise.

I saw some posts about “policing the police” where people who see what seems like potentially an unnecessary amount of police officers around a car or individual stop and watch the situation to make sure there’s no foul play. I also saw, “stay with my son” which means that you stay with the black male being questioned by police until it is over to also make sure there is no foul play. These both seem like great efforts and ideas. Let’s keep it up!

I am dying for raw, honest, tranparent dialogue on this issue. Please share your thoughts in the comments. Let's work through this together! Thanks! 

2,000 years ago the greatest radical walked the earth and said we are forgiven souls

Have we forgotten him and made religion king? Love and grace is what we should be offering

You know this is serious

We’re repeating things we’ve done

We must be delirious thinking it’s new under the sun

Do ya wanna be a part of the solution?

To be one, to be one, to be one is the solution, yeah, yeah! 

Junior Jean
Unity is Strength (taken from Haitian Flag)
A cord of three strands is not easily broken.
www.GoodFruitDesigns.com