72: Difficult conversations

I was at my son’s friend’s birthday party in the summer of 2020, chatting to the other parents. We ended up talking about racism and my friend said something along the lines ‘I don’t understand why we can’t just all get on and be equal.’ The implication being ‘I don’t think I’m racist and I don’t think racism is an issue.’ I have to be honest, in earlier times I would have let it slide but now I’m learning and trying to be anti-racist rather than just not-racist I needed to say something. I said that, although that was a lovely idea, the world we live in is not like that. I related a story I’d listened to that week where parents of black children were explaining how they have to tell their sons in particular to make sure they get, and keep, a receipt for every purchase they make. That’s because it’s likely that any day they could get stopped for shoplifting, hauled into the manager’s office and have to prove their innocence. That and all sorts of other injustices that we, as white parents of white children, simply never need to think about it. A tiny baby-step on my journey but I am committed to having those difficult conversations as they arise and the more I learn and believe the experience of both friends and strangers who are suffering racism, the more I can challenge those behaviours.