99 Ways to Respect Black Women
August 23, 2013 by Hope Wabuke
5. Do not deny these things have happened, these things are happening. Do not deny that this is the painful legacy of 300 years of American slavery from 1619 to 1865, followed by 100 years of apartheid until 1965, followed by the 48 years of institutionalized racism that lives on today.
6. Do not deny that slavery happened.
8. Do not stalk and kill our sons.
19. Do not tell me you are not racist because some of your best friends are black.
25. Do not wrongfully and disproportionally execute our sons and daughters.
41. Do not deny that there are racial stereotypes; do not deny the harmful effects of these stereotypes.
43. Do not deny how racism and racist people permeate and affect every social interaction, even in healthcare.
58. Do not say it’s not racist it’s just words, or it’s just a TV show, or it’s just a movie. These are the things that matter. These are how we create meaning.
64. Do not assume that person means white, that person means male.
66. Do not deny the power of seeing the Confederate flag flown by your white skin when the power of seeing the word “Jesus” is such that a professor can be put on leave.
67. Do not pretend we live in a vacuum and that history doesn’t matter.
72. Do not deny white people have benefited from 600 years of affirmative action.
82. Do not make me the face of welfare or crime—or my black brothers either—when it is not true.
