This is no time to stay neutral

Before COVID-19 forced an early end to the school year, there was a poster in the halls of SHS that quoted Desmond Tutu.

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”

Indeed, these words ring especially true today. A common criticism of the Black Lives Matter movement is that equality’s not just about black people, it’s about all people. All lives matter, in short. Seemingly these three words are comforting. Say them to yourself and you probably won’t feel bad doing so. But they are nothing more than a sandbag, and to respond with these words — whether externally or internally — misconstrues the purpose of Black Lives Matter.

To say that “All Lives Matter” is to express ignorance of the police brutality and institutional racism that has plagued our brothers and sisters. Eric Garner and George Floyd died saying the same three words — “I can’t breathe.” Garner died six years ago, Floyd just over a week from today. There are countless names (including Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor) and countless last words. Aside from police brutality, black people across America are being hit hardest by COVID-19: in Washington, D.C. there are six unemployed black residents to every unemployed white resident. It is harder for them to find not only employment, but healthcare and financial support. In an era where technology connects us so well, it’s clear that moving via inertia, especially now, does little. There are better tools out there, but the act of showing support for Black Lives Matter is no task to brush off.

But the question of what to do often leaves many stumped. On Tuesday, the Black Lives Matter hashtag was flooded with black backgrounds meant for the Blackout Tuesday hashtag. But that hashtag itself was a misinterpretation. Jamila Thomas and Brianna Agyemang intended to request the music industry — themselves being veterans of it — to consider how systemic racism has affected it as a whole. Others expanded the message into a “day of silence”, which ended up blocking users from receiving information from protest organizers. Moreover, Black Lives Matter didn’t spawn from one tragic event, but hundreds of them. It is a movement, plain and simple; one combined show of support is nothing compared to thousands of individual constructive actions. This is a mistake that practically everyone made — myself included. Like I said earlier, inertia leads to inaction — and these mistakes are something to bounce from, not to fall into silence afterward.

There’s a multitude of actions we can take — and not being black is no excuse for staying neutral. Organizations like the NAACP and the Equal Justice Initiative accept donations and contributing to community bail funds is quickly being seen as another way to show support. Challenging others to donate is good, but make sure that you’ve done what you want others to do. It’s also important to inform yourself about the systemic racism in America rather than treat the movements as reactions to tragic events. In the past year, I’ve read “Just Mercy” by Bryan Stevenson, which describes how the criminal justice system unfairly punishes those who are poor or part of an ethnic minority. I’ve also been recommended books like “Stamped”, which chronicles the history of racism and how to fight back against it. Finally, there’s the obvious: practice nonviolence when you can by searching for and joining peaceful protests against police brutality.

The protests occuring today are not just for one act of brutality. They are one part of a movement working to dissolve decades of institutional racism. It’s important not to think of supporting the movement as an in-the-moment requirement, as that leads to half-hearted attempts to placate said obligation. Instead, this is a life-long duty which can only be fulfilled by the passionate efforts of all involved, not by something as simple as a hashtag.

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