So finally, I'm getting a first-hand glimpse at what my black female friends have been experiencing their entire lives: when I speak up against something, people worry that they've pissed me off. This is a new phenomenon for me, because you see, I've been painfully diplomatic all of my life - up until about a year ago. One might say that I'm the ultimate people-pleaser, a formerly trained mediator, the one people go to for help when they want to appease a situation or a person. And one might say that in the past year, after disassociating myself with a highly public job, and finding myself finally advocating for things I deeply value, I've gotten quite comfortable, well.... speaking my mind. In fact I start to squirm and get fidgety if I don't speak up. Now, I'm not an equal opportunity spokesperson for all issues of the world. While I probably wouldn't speak up if my meal were prepared incorrectly or if a party guest smelled bad, if someone tells me that all international students who come to the U.S. are spoiled and manipulative, well, I may just have to speak up. I also might be compelled to speak up if someone assigned blame to a victim of sexual violence, failed to consider the racial biases of our judicial system when discussing capital punishment, or assumed that all people had the choice to pull themselves up by the bootstraps. Ok, Ok, I admit it, if these conversations all took place in the course of one weekend and I have "spoken up" every time these topics were discussed, I may come across to the masses as someone who takes issue with a lot of things, but be assured, this sweet little Asian gal isn't about to blow her top off. She just cares about the future of the world you are living in, and has something to say about how we might all help make it better for everyone. If being passionate about justice equates anger, then folks, shouldn't we all be at least a little bit angry?
Thank you for speaking up!!
ReplyDeleteTanya! Thank YOU!
DeleteHave you checked out the NO MORE campaign? Not to be a complete creep, but I've been reading your blog since my friend Gayle (speaking of creeps ha) did a fundraising campaign for the Rape Crisis Center that you run. I look forward to reading your blog each day but somehow have fallen behind and have just read this. The Say NO MORE campaign is a symbol, much like the pink ribbon for breast cancer, but it represents much more. You can say NO MORE to anything related to sexual assault & domestic violence. It engages men, women, and educates children. For example, you can say NO MORE to: Standing Idly by; Victim Blaming; Silence; Blaming myself...etc. I was able to download the action guide or toolkit (cannot recall what they called it), but it provided so many ways to display this symbol, spread the word, educate the ignorant, etc. If you're in any way intrigued, check out the website www.nomore.org. I know that you don't know me, but I appreciate what you say and do. Thank you.
ReplyDelete-Colleen Speaker
Any friend of Gayle's is a friend of mine! I have not heard of the Say NO MORE campaign, but I can't wait to check it out, Colleen! It sounds absolutely fabulous. Thank you Colleen! Now, I must go creep your profile :-)
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