So this blog post was supposed to have gone up last week but I did not have the feedback I needed to post it up.
As you may have noticed, most of the time, my posts tend to speak about my experiences not only as a foreigner but also as a black person living and working in a white-dominated environment.
So the other day, a white friend pointed out that while she loves my posts so much, she felt that something was missing. I tend to highlight the issues from the black person angle. ‘Cate what about highlighting what your white friends think as well?’ So I asked her to put something together. At first, she was a bit scared, despite having brought up the subject and suggested that I ask my other white friends as well. I did but most of them were either too scared to respond, busy or responded with luke-warm answers.
So anyway, this what she eventually put together. I just edited it a bit but most of it is raw…..
- When you want to be friends with black people around you and especially at work but as soon as there are other black people they drop you. Why can’t I be part of the new friends as well?
- I truly understand and believe that inequality and racism exist but sometimes I have no way of truly knowing all the privilege that I enjoy as a white. I just know there are times, I’d like to learn more and the door closes. I wish we could work towards a solution. have detailed conversations and follow-ups.
- On social media, a lot of my activist black friends will post complaints about “white people say …” “white people think…” “white people do …” And I always feel like saying, “Not ALL white people!”
- I wish my emotional reaction would not be termed as ‘white people shit’. I know these stereotypes go both ways but this one really hurts me a lot.
- Please don’t assume all white people support Trump and are anti-immigration. Because we don’t.
So what do ya’ll think? Was this helpful coming from a white person’s view?Sound off on the comments.