Daring Yourself to Begin

As a white woman who first became interested in racial justice mostly out of personal needs (my son is bi-racial), I really had no idea where the "journey" of engaging in a dialogue about race and racism would take me. I became slightly more interested the more work i did in social justice and walking with the poor and oppressed. For if one studies social justice, often the most poor and vulnerable and oppressed are people of color. It's funny how we (white social justice activisits) sort of "know" this but don't often enough discuss why this is.
And what a journey it would be! As a white person reading my partner's (Delma Jackson) entry, you might begin to feel defensive, angry, guilty, and/or hopeless. That's ok. I did too--but only in the beginning of my studies and conversations. In fact, the more knowledge I gained about why and how structures of power were constructed and decisions were made, the more empowered I became. We made racism. And we can unmake racism.
There is (and will continue to be) a wealth of information at this site. Dare yourself to check it out. Respond. Ask Questions. Challenge. And most importantly, Believe. Dare yourself to Believe there is another way. Believe that the realities of racism that we see today and the effects we feel do NOT have to be our destiny. For we are destined for nothing but the result of our own choices. We hope to see you on the journey. Peace.
Joyce McCauley-Benner
Co-founder The Sankofa Project