I’m not sure I quite follow what you mean here - surely this is no different from e.g. watching a tv show with black actors? Or do you mean specific subsets of gifs with people of colour (e.g. ones which re-inforce stereotypes)?
I mean that if you wouldn’t say it yourself because AAVE is being used (and if you would, that’s another discussion as a white person), then I feel like it’s inappropriate to use. It is especially inappropriate if used to reinforce a stereotype.
1 Like
(So I realised I could probably just google this, sorry)
The articles I’m looking at suggest it’s a problem because it’s one-dimensionalising people into a single action or phrase (it mentions turning sweet brown, of “ain’t nobody got time for that” fame into a meme without mentioning the whole story, which I can definitely see and I’ve felt uncomfortable about in the past). The internet does have this flattening effect on people’s stories, and I can definitely see how it is much worse when a) it’s the same small subset of things again and again and b) there is a lack of nuanced stories about a group of people. I also definitely agree with your point about AAVE.
I feel like cases where either it’s a gif of a character, where you don’t get the same flattening effect, or if it’s just an expression/reaction that isn’t particularly linked to race, that doesn’t obviously seem bad? But I obviously have more reading to do
1 Like
Here’s a nice pro/con of sorts since the latter is a reaction to the former. Like all this stuff there’s no consensus because of natural diversity of opinion, but I play it ultra conservative with this kind of thing. If there’s even a whiff that it could be taken a certain way I don’t do it. The gif thing I’ve definitely done a lot in the past but I won’t anymore because I think it’s vital to err wayyyyy on the side of caution, especially right now and especially for us (white ppl).
2 Likes
Thanks for the links! Yeah I definitely agree that I want to err on the side of not hurting anyone- It was just not something I’d heard about before so want to try to understand the reasons why, so I can have a better idea of what I’m doing.
3 Likes
Oh for sure! 
I took your inquiry exactly that way!
2 Likes
I hadn’t read or heard anything about gifs specifically, these were also just my thoughts when reading about emojis and during text conversations with friends.
Thanks @AllHat for the links!
2 Likes
I did not end up signing up for the class because I emailed them and they said they’ll run it again in September. Honestly I might have the exact same scheduling issues, but I wanted to let people know in case anyone else was interested but had conflicts!
2 Likes
Talkative BIPOC are telling people to stop DM’ing them asking for free diversity & inclusion information/consulting.
THIS is what made me so uncomfortable about my previous employer. They didn’t hire people, they asked for volunteers from the employees. Gah.
6 Likes
Ewwwww this is so not okay.
3 Likes
John Lewis asked that The New York Times publish this message from him on the day of his funeral.
Here is what he wrote to be published today:
Together, You Can Redeem the Soul of Our Nation
Though I am gone, I urge you to
answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe.While my time here has now come to an end, I want you to know that in the last days and hours of my life you inspired me. You filled me with hope about the next chapter of the great American story when you used your power to make a difference in our society. Millions of people motivated simply by human compassion laid down the burdens of division. Around the country and the world you set aside race, class, age, language and nationality to demand respect for human dignity.
That is why I had to visit Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, though I was admitted to the hospital the following day. I just had to see and feel it for myself that, after many years of silent witness, the truth is still marching on.
Emmett Till was my George Floyd. He was my Rayshard Brooks, Sandra Bland and Breonna Taylor. He was 14 when he was killed, and I was only 15 years old at the time. I will never ever forget the moment when it became so clear that he could easily have been me. In those days, fear constrained us like an imaginary prison, and troubling thoughts of potential brutality committed for no understandable reason were the bars.
Though I was surrounded by two loving parents, plenty of brothers, sisters and cousins, their love could not protect me from the unholy oppression waiting just outside that family circle. Unchecked, unrestrained violence and government-sanctioned terror had the power to turn a simple stroll to the store for some Skittles or an innocent morning jog down a lonesome country road into a nightmare. If we are to survive as one unified nation, we must discover what so readily takes root in our hearts that could rob Mother Emanuel Church in South Carolina of her brightest and best, shoot unwitting concertgoers in Las Vegas and choke to death the hopes and dreams of a gifted violinist like Elijah McClain.
Like so many young people today, I was searching for a way out, or some might say a way in, and then I heard the voice of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on an old radio. He was talking about the philosophy and discipline of nonviolence. He said we are all complicit when we tolerate injustice. He said it is not enough to say it will get better by and by. He said each of us has a moral obligation to stand up, speak up and speak out. When you see something that is not right, you must say something. You must do something. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part to help build what we called the Beloved Community, a nation and world society at peace with itself.
Ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America by getting in what I call good trouble, necessary trouble. Voting and participating in the democratic process are key. The vote is the most powerful nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. You must use it because it is not guaranteed. You can lose it.You must also study and learn the lessons of history because humanity has been involved in this soul-wrenching, existential struggle for a very long time. People on every continent have stood in your shoes, though decades and centuries before you. The truth does not change, and that is why the answers worked out long ago can help you find solutions to the challenges of our time. Continue to build union between movements stretching across the globe because we must put away our willingness to profit from the exploitation of others.
Though I may not be here with you, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe. In my life I have done all I can to demonstrate that the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence is the more excellent way. Now it is your turn to let freedom ring.
When historians pick up their pens to write the story of the 21st century, let them say that it was your generation who laid down the heavy burdens of hate at last and that peace finally triumphed over violence, aggression and war. So I say to you, walk with the wind, brothers and sisters, and let the spirit of peace and the power of everlasting love be your guide.
15 Likes
Ah Smacky, thank you for sharing.
I’m saving this to read when I can sneak away from my desk to cry.
3 Likes
For anyone on Instagram, the voltedvoices account is a Black organization designed to be a learning space for non-Blacks. It’s pretty great - writing is clear and plain and tackles a good spectrum of issues.
5 Likes
Wow. That’s powerful.
1 Like
Question: I am part of a women/trans/femme sports group that is majority white, about 30% black/latinx/asian/etc (no indigenous folks since started collecting data 2 yrs ago). We usually teach a summer skills series; it’s going to be video-based this year. I would like to make sure POC are featured in ways that showcase their expertise.
One possibility is setting a target of 50% of on-air people being POC. However, because this is an all-volunteer operation, that also means additional free labor from these folks. What are anti-racist approaches to think about / act on / organize this?
5 Likes
I made a list of podcasts that helped me learn things on another journal and I thought I should copy it here.
3 Likes
Since it’s reliant on volunteers, can you compensate them in a non-monetary way for their time? Or if they are already in a volunteer role, take those things off them to give them space to do this, and share the load better? I’m not sure if these are good, just spit balling. It’s easier in some ways for non-voluntary things because there’s an obvious answer of “pay them appropriately for time & expertise”.
2 Likes
Brought up at the last community meeting (which sounds so formal - it’s not):
Black people are fucking tired of charity, of white and affluent people’s leftovers, their scraps.
Seems like a simple connection to make, but every time I think about/talk about short term solutions with folks, it’s about sharing the excess, which tends to be the leftovers in terms of money, equipment, clothing, food.
The immediate needs are identified: food, housing, medical.
I have no idea what the solution is.
Also, if any of you are organizing locally, please get off Google docs/notes/mail/etc. to do so. Riseup.net offers free VPN, chat, mail, and shareable notetaking services that are secure.
8 Likes
Those are good nudges! So far:
- 2 of 3 people have received major donated/loaner equipment in the past. (Not a direct compensation for this round of work, but.)
- I moved the filming location to be more convenient for them. Good reminder to think about the location of future events as well.
2 Likes
The only real solutions are at the systemic level.
4 Likes