"We Are One": Selma Civil Rights March

In this world, we all want most of the same things. One of the main things would be respect. I feel like it's a very important quality to have in a person. One of my artifacts that I have included in this essay is a picture from one of my sources. I would personally like to call this artifact “We Are One.” This picture really caught my attention and caught my eyes. Out of everything I read out of that article, This picture really tied up everything I would like to say in one. This picture shows from long ago how people were marching for black lives matter. This picture doesn't just symbolize black lives matter, this picture symbolizes A nation, the United. If you're really content with the picture you can see a bunch of people holding up the American flag. When you think of the American flag, what protection really comes up in your head? I think of freedom. But do we really have freedom in America? No. I say no because I don't see freedom. If there was freedom in America there wouldn't be riots, protests, divides in the world. A lot of people say America is a free country, freedom of speech, you're able to do what you certainly want. Is that true for everyone? No. Who is that mostly true to? Non colored people. I'm not calling non colored people out. I'm just trying to make it a better understanding for people who don't really understand. If you see closely in the picture, there are white people there. They are there to prove a point, to protect, to use their white privilege for good. 

How “often acts of racism and xenophobia are perpetuated and overlooked today” (Suciu). I really liked the way this sentence was phrased, especially how racism is overlooked today. It has now been an eye-opener for people who didn't see racism in the past but one main thing that is overlooked is white privilege. White Privilege is something that a lot of people get confused about. The meaning of white privilege isn't the privilege that you had growing up getting nice things, having a good life. you could have grown up having an awful life but when someone says you have privilege they are not targeting that. They are targeting the color of your skin. You are not a threat to people. You are socially acceptable. You don't need to worry about losing your life to a cop if you get pulled over. You don't need to worry about getting mugged or shot if you're walking alone at night based on the color of your skin. There might be other things that you have done to get yourself in that position but the color of your skin isn't the target. Privilege gets very mixed up sometimes. I personally could say that I have privilege. I grew up in a predominantly white school, Nice neighborhood, and got things that I wanted. I personally don't fear for my life every time I walk out that door. To me that is my privilege. The privilege that I don't have is getting made fun of for the way I look and the color of my skin. Because I have “white friends”, Means I'm white washed or I'm a white girl wannabe. Why can't I just have friends? Why if you see me with other white people you automatically assume that I'm trying to be like them.

That is the problem I have in this day in age everyone stereotypes, everyone judges, no matter what you are and who you are. My “greatest advice would be to pay close attention to differing views among African Americans on topics with regard to race and racism” (Rambsy).

A lot of white people try to tell black people or other people of color what they can and cannot feel about something. How are you supposed to know what a black person feels if you are not a black person? You can Try to get a sense of understanding but you will never understand. Sometimes it's as if “you're being so dramatic”, “that was a joke you're being a snowflake”, “I get made fun of because you're not the only one”. Those are comments that I have gotten in the past by white people. If something genuinely offends me and you tell me that I have no right to be offended, who are you to say that? You don't know what it's like to be judged by everything you do based on A different race.There have been comments about the way I speak. Based on the way I speak, “I am not black.” What's that supposed to mean? Because I talk properly, and I'm respectful, and I have manners, I am not black? This is where stereotyping comes into play, because I'm not ghetto, I don't speak like a thug, I don't want to fight everyone, I'm automatically assumed as “trying to be white”. What's the point of it all? I really just want people who don't understand to take a step back and maybe get in their heads of how you would feel if you were in a person of color shoes. That is why I feel like both of my sources kind of tie into everything I want to say. The significance of my artifacts are to show that there are people that are united, there are people that want to stand up for each other and help each other.

Rambsy, Howard. “Dr. Howard Rambsy on Black Authors, Jay-Z, and New Perspectives on  Race.” “It’s important for people to immerse themselves into a space where they’re  discussing race and racism from others’ perspectives.”, 22 July 2020

Suciu, Courtney. “How Do We Talk to Students About Racism?” Teaching students the hard  history of slavery and race relations in the U.S. to better understand the present and prepare for the future, 09 September 2020.