To say that the events of the past couple of weeks have been exhausting and draining is an understatement.

Ahmaud Abery.

Breonna Taylor.

George Floyd.

Protests. Riots. Looting. Case after case after case of police brutality and utilizing excessive force.

My heart is breaking. My soul is weary.

And I know that the way I have felt these past couple weeks is how BIPOC feel each and every day. For years.

There are so many things on my heart right now. All the discussions and nuances of privilege, racism, implicit biases, incarceration rates, police brutality, peaceful protests, violent protests.

But for now, I implore you…especially those of you who are white, especially those of you who are white and Christian.

Please.

Listen.

Listen to the people around you. Listen to Black voices. Listen to minorities. Listen to the people protesting. Listen to their stories.

Lament.

Allow this to break you. Hear and empathize and weep with the people around you. Weep with those who weep.

Do your work.

Be the Bridge is a great group on Facebook. They have a policy in place where you must be silent, listen, and simply read posts for 3 months after joining. They also include some great units to go through during your period of silence.

Ally Henny, on both Facebook and Instagram

Here are some great accounts on Instagram…
@Ckyourprivilege
@whitegirllearning
@austinchanning (Also can be found on Facebook)
@theconsciouskid

And here is an amazing resource with specific things you can learn and action steps to take.

I recognize that there are so many things that can be discussed on this topic. But for now, let’s listen, lament, and do our work.