TW: Discussions of racism.
When I think back to lockdown last year, one of the first things that comes to mind is the rise in the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, particularly over the summer. Going into lockdown in March of 2020 meant we finally had the much-needed time to acknowledge some of the most important issues that had constantly been swept under the rug for years on years, namely entrenched racism within society and the steps that would be taken to address the issue.
Conversations between all groups of people and institutions were being had, opinions and legislation were being changed, the long-awaited progress that the black community worldwide had been waiting for seemed to finally have started.
A conversation that I really enjoyed witnessing was regarding white privilege. White privilege is defined as “the societal privilege that benefits white people over nonwhite people”. Some people were so committed to proving how white privilege doesn’t exist that dissertations were written and speeches given, all for them to be debunked by the countless videos of “Karen's" who use their white privilege to act out their entitlement that surfaced weekly on the internet. While the concept of a Karen is humorous, the implications that their actions can have can be very dangerous. White fragility and a white womans tears have led to the silencing, the incrimination and even the death of POC and black men and women. Think of any video of a Karen that you’ve seen on social media, and they all seem to follow a similar structure: the white woman - the often unprovoked aggressor confronts a POC or black person who is victimised by the Karen’s entitled behaviour, accusations and on many now viral infamous occasions, downright lies. The victim responds to the attack, usually in a calm manner only to be on the receiving end of tears, as though they had been the aggressor throughout the whole altercation, suggesting a threat level to the crying on command Karen, leading to sympathy for her and hostility for the victim.
White priviledge is nothing new. The heartbreaking story of Emmet Till, a 14 year old black boy from Mississippi, who in the 50s was lynched and beaten to death for speaking to a white woman and supposedly flirting with her in a grocery store paints a picture of what white privilege can lead to. This pattern has been around for decades, it's just that today, it's being caught on camera, and we can finally see the truth of how white privilege manifests and is a real weapon deployed by the most unsuspecting of aggressors.
All things considered, lockdown 2020 was a blessing and the chance for everyone to finally open their eyes.
---- Rebekah Akinyele, BAME Officer
