The significance of what happened three days ago, the attempted overthrow of the United States government by extremist Trump loyalists, was witnessed by the world in real-time. A violent band of domestic terrorists stormed the Capitol and, seemingly, were allowed to do so without meeting the immediate militarized policing that's rolled out anytime Indigenous, Black and Brown Americans peacefully protest to protect their lives.
If you can understand the universally-held science — and good manners — behind covering your mouth when you cough, then you can understand how wearing a mask in public, to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, is an act of commonsense goodwill that could, potentially, save someone’s life.
The difficulty with identifying (and defeating) systemic racism, especially for those of us who are not its intended target, comes from the fact that its existence and implementation -- by design -- is insidious. Its invisibility ensures its longevity.
Talking about racism and addressing racial injustice can be a difficult topic to navigate, especially if you’re White and relatively new to learning about or fighting against how entrenched it is within American society. Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPoC) have been telling us about this for a very long time; that racism is individually and institutionally pervasive. And it kills.
Discussing this topic can be difficult because it triggers passionate emotional reactions; to combat the fact that thoughts centred around this can sometimes bubble over into intense and overly complicated debate; I've decided to write out my thoughts in a straightforward way — exploring why I'm 100% pro-choice.
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