Woke /wōk/

Many conversations nowadays start with, “How are you holding up during this COVID-19 pandemic?” I simply answer the question with a question- “How are you coping with the new normal?” Approximately two months into the era of social distancing, self-isolation, and quarantine, I’m rather curious... what does normal mean anymore?

Like most, I looked at a new decade with optimism; but six months in, I wondered if things could get any worse. We started with a chain of wildfires, to airplane crashes, to the tragic death of a basketball legend, to civil disorder over the murder of #GeorgeFloyd, to several natural disasters... all under the umbrella of the coronavirus pandemic.

As if this isn’t exhausting enough, the local news makes it even more depressing. Over the past few weeks, I’ve watched thousands of people across the United States protest to denounce institutional racism and police violence, and as a single Black mother who’s been worried about my Black son encountering the police since he was at least 8-months-old, I’m even more afraid. The 2012 death of #TrayvonMartin represented my greatest fear for him.

Present-day, I teach my 9-year-old how to speak to police officers so that it will give him the best chance of surviving any type of encounter he’s faced with. Although he should be looking to officers of the law for protection, I have to prepare him for the possible outcome of aggression based on racism. So now I ask, “How do you teach a child anti-racism in a racist world?”

Well, it simply starts at home. Whether you are a parent or not, I hope you understand that we all have a part to play in this. Back in May, I came across a blog (cited below) that offered great resources on being anti-racist and how we can strive to live a more inclusive life.

I strongly believe that before we can teach our own children, we need to understand anti-racism ourselves.

Racism and violence against Black people have been a problem for hundreds upon hundreds of years. I realize that there is no rule book for raising a Black boy in America and there is no unique or individual organization that holds all the answers to every question that may arise. Even so, I will teach my son to oppose racism through instruction and conversation. Recent events like a White woman calling the police on a Black man who simply asked that she follow the rules and put her dog on a leash blew my mind. This was an essential discussion for me to have with my son, as I'm trying to ensure his survival in a nation filled with #AmyCoopers and even far worse.

Furthermore, I've explained the protest against police violence that has erupted across the country mirroring those that followed the killing of #EricGarner in 2014.

I’m simply encouraging you to navigate conversations with the children in your life so they too have the chance to better understand what is happening around them.

Every child has the right to grow up healthy, educated, and safe regardless of race, gender, or socioeconomic status. Systemic change to end racism is essential to achieving this vision. Remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of a dream where children should not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Now, more than half a century later we still don’t get it.

If we desire to see a world where our children love one another regardless of what each other looks like, celebrate each other’s differences, see the beauty in every skin tone, connect with people who have different cultural backgrounds, beliefs, & religions, and honor them, then we must start the education at home, and that first starts within. We NEED to raise a generation of compassionate, empathetic, and enlightened children and future leaders.

So ask yourself, during quarantine have you solely been on your computer, smartphone, and/or tablet for entertainment? If so, please take a moment and realize that your digital device can be your ultimate tool for GROWTH, which in turn will help everyone around you grow! #EachOne #TeachOne

#BLM #BreonnaTaylor #ElijahMClain #Educate

http://www.chookooloonks.com/blog/this-was-a-good-week-200529