WHY IS DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION SO IMPORTANT TO ME?
... So that the first problem is how to control that rage so that it won’t destroy you.
(James Baldwin from “The Negro in American Culture”)
No, my resume does not reflect 10+ years of successfully leading racial equity and healing work at either local or systems levels, but what I do have is 33 years of personal experiences that speak to the effects of race and racism on individuals, communities, institutions, and systems.
I bring the experience of moving into a Polish neighborhood on the east side of Cleveland (Slavic Village) when I was 10-years-old. My mother, entering into a first-time home buyers program for low-income families, had to explain to her four children and elderly mother, why “KKK” was spray painted eight feet off the ground, in gold letters onto the front exterior of our new country-blue painted home. I recall it making national news in 1995.
I bring the experience of feeling fearful, that same 10-year-old JacQuaye, of what threats might lie ahead as countless times my twin brother and I were called "nigger" and "burnt rice" from the doors and porches of "neighbors" as we rode our bicycles throughout the neighborhood or walked to the corner store for the occasional candy or ice cream. I remember always thinking, "just keep looking straight", fully aware that if we needed to run to escape a physical altercation should it ensue, we knew the quickest route to safety. You see, we were one of the first black families to move into that neighborhood and we certainly knew what some folks thought of us! It wasn't everyone, but it was enough people to make me fearful for years.
I bring the firsthand experience of black-on-blue killings, years before the tragedy of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, as the City of Cleveland police department killed my younger brother's father when I was 12 and then my best friend’s father when we were 17; more wrongful deaths in which the department had to settle out of court and pay millions; leaving both families and their communities to grieve and suffer the loss of these men’s lives tragically ended too soon.
I bring the experience of being a mother to a three-year-old black boy whom I fear each day he grows older, because as my innocent toddler gets smarter, wiser and bigger; he becomes a threat to society due to the color of his skin, as the odds of him being imprisoned are greater than him attending college. I bring the experience of being a sister who made it through the system we know as America, to achieve higher education, but not without two brothers being locked away in a prison-industrial complex that needs bodies to perform modern day and legalized slavery; one was sentenced to four years and the other 18 to life.
I bring the experience of a wife who is scared when her husband pulls out of the driveway each day or goes for a workout around our neighborhood because the likelihood of him being accosted simply “walking-while-black” or “driving-while-black” is a reality… and the end result is often death, as I know all-too-well.
I bring the experience of having to constantly affirm to my daughter that her dark brown skin, bushy and coiled hair texture and body type, although not celebrated in mainstream media; are indeed beautiful and that she is fearfully and wonderfully made, in spite of the constant messages on TV that tell her she’ll never be good enough!
I bring the experience of youth advocate as my student was the first identified transgender student to attend a camp. As his advocate, I had to help give voice to the immediate need for the governing organization to adapt to the changing times and to be more inclusive of all students, as challenges of gender-specific room assignments and the lack of gender-neutral bathrooms proved to be overly-complicated; leaving my student feeling isolated and running around camp all weekend in search of a bathroom he felt comfortable and safe enough to use. A common right that every person should have, but didn’t because, although not intentional, little consideration was given prior to my students’ stay.
And to sum it up, in 2019, I bring the experience of genuinely feeling fearful, even as a working professional and productive member of society, to drive in the car with my children to grab a quick bite to eat, because mothers of color are pulled out of their vehicles in front of their children; assaulted, arrested, imprisoned for minor violations- and some simply do not make it home to their children!
These are the experiences of just one woman- and no, it's not just black and white with me! It's human rights with me! These are some of the factors behind what emboldens me to fight for diversity, equity, and inclusion all-the-more. My heart is truly to carry on the mission of DEI because even with these notches in my belt, I have hope for a better future that my children and so many others will get the chance to live in.
You may say I'm angry, disillusioned and that I perceive threats that aren't really present. To you I say, get to know me before you judge me and know that my desire for equity and equality far exceeds some desire to be right. I will never apologize for believing that everyone deserves better.
Until THIS COMMUNITY (click pink link ⬅️) #MuskegonHeights and thousands of others like it in America (AND THE PEOPLE) are built up to be just as safe and flourishing as suburban communities, I will not sit back in silence!
#Advocate
#HumanRights
#MinorityRights
#WomensRights
#LGBTQRights
#AccessibilityRights
#MentalHealthRights
#AndEveryOtherRightToo
#WereAllCreatedEqual #YetNotAllGivenEquity
#DontBlameTheMessengerForTheMessage
#CertainlyNotBitter #OnlyBetter
#EgoEconomics vs.
#CultureAndCommunity
#IChooseBoth
Comments
Post a Comment