These past few months have been a doozy for reading and listening to racist statements from the likes of a basketball coach, a rancher, a Norwegian zoo commemoration of a Congolese people display, soccer fans throwing bananas, the continued use of Indian mascots and a Princeton student who will not apologize for his white privilege–just to name a few!
But what really stands out is the level of openness of a white man openly killing a black teenager for listening to loud music.
Every day there is a new post about an incident– not including the everyday microagressions that people of color deal with and never report. How much longer are we going to stand by and not be outraged as citizens, as a country? When will we take collective action to start the termination of racism by creating an inclusive truth and reconciliation process with healing our wounds? I think a first step is to recognize our human oneness. What happens to one happens to us all.
Race Unity Day is coming up on June 12, 2014 and I thought it would be an appropriate time to take action. Race Unity Day was created in 1957 with the sole purpose of focusing attention on racial prejudice. Race unity can be defined as the belief that there is only one race of human beings and that skin color is a superfluous difference of our phenotype stemming from our physical environments. Science has already proven this to be fact and the American Anthropological Association has also confirmed this just in case there are doubters. If we continue to perpetuate race and racism then we are going against science.
Take a stand for Race Unity on June 12th by posting photos, personal statements and stories and tag them #RaceUnity on Twitter, Facebook and other social media. Begin new friendships with people who don’t look like you and start discussion groups at school, houses of worship and work. Be creative!! Let’s show America that science and love are more powerful than ignorance, hate and apathy. Racism is a serious barrier to achieving peace and tranquility in this country. Let’s wipe out racism in our lifetime!! Take a stand for race unity!