Our history of White oppression of Black people from slavery, Black Codes, Jim Crow, hatred of Blacks pursuing personhood in the Civil Rights era, informs the discrimination that persists today. There's no getting around it other than trying to deny that it's so. I see this in some of my family members and I cringe. As the facilitator said at the beginning, it's a problem begun by and perpetuated by White people, and White people have to be the authors of the changes that will create true equality.
I am touched by memories of my childhood, of the disparities between myself, my family, and the African Americans I grew up with.
What stood out for me was the materials on redlining, racial discrimination, and poverty, and how that triggered memories and experiences, and my studies in college and scholarship. The treatment of people of color makes me angry and frustrated.
