I was born by the river in a little tent
Oh and just like the river I've been running ev'r since
It's been a long time, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it willSam Cook lyrics, performed by Brian Owens Soul
The Black Lives Matter protests we are seeing across the globe are a pivotal turning point in our history. Black bodies have been at the front-line of injustice around the world for over 400 years. This moment, an opportunity presented to us, is a chance to save our planet, by embracing unity and building community.
I think of our current system like an apple tree. As the protests shine a light on the rotten foundations of our global system, it is as if they are the rotting roots of an apple tree. This system of oppression, set up 400 years ago on the backs of slaves and powered by the Western World’s shameful colonial history, has been working exactly as it was designed: imposing divisions and hierarchy based on skin colour, gender, birthplace etc, generating wealth for “the haves” through exploitation of “the have-nots” (Marx).
It is almost impossible to save a tree which is dying from the inside. We can learn lessons from eating its fruit, but there is only so long we can trim or whittle away at dead wood. Some people may suggest to spray it with fungicide or insecticide, try scraping out the rot, or even fill the holes with concrete. Not me. I believe it is time to plant a new tree.
“It always seems impossible until it’s done”, Nelson Mandela. I N T H E S E H A N D S by Emma Barrett Palmer | Parliament Square - London | 2016
Those of us with white skin have been beneficiaries of this system - with enough privilege to be able to ignore the rot. But now we must use our privileged positions to root it out, by dismantling all processes and procedures which perpetuate white supremacy in all its forms.
As white people we must stop placing labour expectations for solving systemic racism on Black and Brown communities: it’s our turn now, it’s on us. First and foremost, we must listen and learn from BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Colour) and be humble as we are guided towards a new way which is fair and just for everyone.
This is not easy work and there are no quick fix solutions - it requires inter-generational lifetimes’ of work which can only be achieved by working together beyond our present realities. It requires a transformation of leadership to embrace humanitarian, ecological and spiritual aspects of the whole system. Most importantly, we must not make the same errors in the rebuild that have dominated the last 400 years.
The “Me and White Supremacy” Instagram Challenge was a profound turning point in my own personal learning in the summer of 2018 and is now powering a global movement. As the visionary author @laylafsaad said a few days ago:
The revolution will not be colonised
Layla F. Saad
We need a common language to bring us all to the same page. After a 16,000 mile journey, cooking and sharing food with uprooted and displaced communities across Europe, I conclude this is Food, a global language of love, life, justice and survival. Seeds will be our new currency.
Using principles from the circular economy model, we could transform access to food, production, distribution and consumption, ensuring ethical, transparent and inclusive processes at every stage of the supply chain. We must turn our attention from monetary banks and markets to food banks and markets which focus on true-cost accounting. This approach has the potential to be a health and wealth generator, reconnecting whole communities and enabling everyone to participate, with a bellyful.
“The tried to bury us - they didn’t know we were seeds”, Dinos Christianopoulos — P A Z by Emma Barrett Palmer | Exarchia - Athens | 2018
As we decolonise our white mindsets, conditioned over centuries, we must really listen to people’s truths in whichever form they choose to share them. The truths of creativity, in ally-ship with Mother Earth; of art, song, poetry, music, which tell us so much more than ticks in boxes. Truths enabling equitable representation of voice, from which we can work towards an evidence based systems rebuild, prioritising humanitarian and ecological protection and recovery.
So let us keep planting seeds and grafting our rootstocks, so that our collective future becomes an orchard of apple trees, healthy roots digging deep, while branches stand tall, proud, strong and defiant in the storms, leaves shining as they reflect rainbows across the sky.
“Your pilot light … that is the torch that you are going to bring to the battle”, Desiree Burch, a New York-based solo performance artist, comedian, writer, actress, and educator.
This little light of mine
I'm gonna let it shine
This little light of mine
I'm gonna let it shine
This little light of mine
I'm gonna let it shine
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shineGospel Song written by Harry Dixon Loes; civil rights context explored by Eric Deggans here.
