Reviewed by Kevin Jeffrey Goldwater
On August 9th, 2014, Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot and killed by Darren Wilson, a white police officer, in Ferguson, Missouri.
On August 10th, 2014, I walked into the Chicago Cultural Center for one of my triweekly choir rehearsals, completely unaware of the events that occurred the day before.
As I approached my locker, I saw a few friends in a circle, seemingly consoling someone. I asked my locker partner what was going on, and he explained that our friend Alexis was sobbing over the Brown shooting. I quickly googled the event, read up on the facts, and responded to myself, “oh wow, that’s really terrible.” I understood something bad had happened, but felt no connection or an effect to my world. I looked up from my phone to see Alexis and heard her explain how terrified she was to see her older brother, Julius, simply walk out their front door. She explained that it can be terrifying to be a black person in America.
I stared at this person—a black teenage girl who I have known since she entered middle school; this girl is several years my junior, however from observing her resilience, joy and talent since meeting her I looked up to, admired, and adored her. Alexis is known to all around her for having an immense vocal talent that we haven’t seen paralleled, a talent so natural that it brings joy to those around her; she is a close friend of mine who shared a million memories and a million songs. I looked at her, and I became angry.
A million thoughts swarmed my mind, and I was furious. It is ridiculous, I thought, that this girl, who I look up to, would ever be treated differently from myself, just based on our skin! What the hell is that about?
I hardly paid attention in rehearsal. I could not fathom someone treating Alexis worse than myself in any situation based on her appearance. I grew up in institutions that prided themselves on diversity, where the administrators were typically women of color and the student body (though majorly higher SES) was filled with students of all races. I had not been confronted by the fact that my peers (and higher ups) could receive different treatment. I had assumed everything “racially” was pretty much solved after the Civil Rights Movement.
While I was as old as a senior in high school, I was not aware of my white privilege, the position of being white in our world and the ways that whiteness creates ‘otherness’ for those who are not. To think of Alexis or her family, or my beloved teachers or my choir directors as ‘others’ in our society, as groups that are already pushed a step behind, became a wake-up call. . . . . . . . .
Editors Caldwell and Leighton begin the book with an aptly named preface “Who We Are and Why We’re Here,” discussing their experiences in life and the embodied oppressions they have taken on by simply existing as themselves. Of particular note to myself is something that has become one of my favorite parts of any book—authors sharing their experiences of their experience—Caldwell and Leighton noted: “We questioned if we should do this project. We talked about ‘well-meaning white-lady-syndrome’; we considered the irony of two cisgender white women asking people of color and gender-non-conforming folks to share their stories of oppression with us, which can be in and of itself a reiteration of oppression. In the end, we affirmed that this project needed doing and privilege is reinforced when we stay comfortable silent…” This realization of their place as white, cis women and their relation to others is particularly important, as they are examples of what they are trying to encourage from this.
Reflecting on their place in the world and how that world effects them, these women set the tone for each contributor by sharing raw, honest, and impassioned presentations of self. To read the entire review, please CLICK HERE
Edited by
Christine Caldwell
and Lucia Bennett Leighton
To read the entire review, please CLICK HERE
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