For the past several hours, I’ve watched the protests in Atlanta, stemming from the death of George Floyd, turned into riots. I’ve watched cars catch on fire and buildings get ruined. And my heart hurts. But the truth is, my heart doesn’t hurt half as bad as any black American. Why? Because I’m a privileged white girl. All I had to do to gain that privilege, was be born. My children are privileged because they are white. My son is even more privileged being a white male. Although my children were born 50% Hispanic, they are white. They will never feel judged or questioned simply because of the color of their skin. And as their white mom, I can’t sit back any longer.
I used to always say “color doesn’t matter, just be kind to everyone.” The truth is, color DOES matter. It was ignorant for me to think it didn’t. It was my white privilege that gave me those thoughts. I never saw color before. Now, I do. And from now on, I will teach my children that they should not only see color, but to admire it. They will be taught that they are never to use their white privilege for evil, and to love and respect everyone. They will be taught to not look past a person’s skin color, but rather look even harder into the beauty of our differences, and that to respect others you must have empathy and understanding. They will be taught to use their privilege as an American, to vote for people and issues that will make things better for the entire community, and to not be afraid to speak out when they see things that are wrong! There are many things I can do to make a change, and it starts in my home. I know I haven’t done enough outside of my home. That ends now.
To my fellow white Americans, if you are outraged by the evil that is still being shown through racism and privilege, don’t just post about it on social media, do something!
The Meltdown Mama 