Charleston

Senior Pastor, Rev. Clementa Pinckney, 41– Image by © RANDALL HILL/Reuters/Corbis

I could choose to write about Father’s Day.  I’m not worried about my father getting shot just going through his day.  That’s Privilege.  I could choose to write about the Summer Solstice.  The longest day of the year when the sun shines, illuminating things.  Maybe I’ll just shine my light on a Difficult Topic, #BlackLivesMatter.

Tywanza Sanders 26 Graduate of Allen University in Columbia, SC. with a degree in business administration. (Anita Brewer Dantzler via AP)

We are taught a very highly Edited version of history.   I had no idea how important the AME church was, historically, until Obama started talking about it.  I believe it is our personal responsibility to educate our selves on the things going on around us that the System would rather we ignore.  This is not an easy task.  It first requires an understanding that what we are taught isn’t the whole story.

Cynthia Hurd, 54
Hurd was a branch manager at the Charleston County Public Library.

The reason people who are educated in this area talk about systemic racism is because it is invisible and perpetuated by the system.  This is not a new thing.  I remember Kent State.  The first time the National Guard opened fire on campus?  No.  The first time a white upper middle class student was killed.  Yes.

Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45
Coleman-Singleton was a high school track coach at Charleston Southern University

I hear white people ask, “Why is it always about race?”   Because when you have to live with it every day, you begin to realize it is inescapable.  There is a reason that #BlackLivesMatter is not #AllLivesMatter.  It is not because all lives shouldn’t matter, but because it’s clear that Black lives don’t.

There is a difference between not actively perpetuating the problem and helping to solve it.  That difference starts with awareness.  The things that are so common it’s easy not to even notice are often referred to as microaggressions.

Myra Thompson, 59
Wife of Reverend Anthony Thompson, Vicar of Holy Trinity Reformed Episcopal Church in Charleston.

Learning to recognize these in ourselves,

in the media, and in others is a big step towards simply validating the problem.  Then the next step is to Speak Up.

Ethel Lee Lance, 70
(AP Photo/David Goldman)

I end where I started, encouraging self education.  Each of these links takes you to places where you can hear different voices, and perhaps learn more.  Additionally I recommend checking out my friend Crystal Blanton’s 30 Day Real Black History Challenge.  She’s been doing this for several years so check out her archives as well.

Rev. Daniel Simmons, 74

Crystal was instrumental in the editing of the anthology Bringing Race to the Table:Exploring Racism in the Pagan Community.  I have a small essay in that book, and I’m very proud to be a contributor.  I recommend it to non-Pagans as well.  The book is structured with a section on People of Color’s experiences, a section on History, and a section where ally’s speak.  I think the material is widely applicable and sometimes it’s easier to hear if you have a little distance.

Thank you for reading.

Rev. DePayne Middleton-Doctor, 49
Enrollment counselor at the Charleston campus of Southern Wesleyan University

 

Susie Jackson, 87
(AP Photo/David Goldman)

Photos from Huffington Post