YSWNPY-Zine 20, final - Flipbook - Page 37
A
s a young Black woman
growing up in the suburbs, I
have been subjected to racism
for as long as I can
remember. The use of digital activism
has spiked throughout my social media
feeds within the past few months, and the
conversations on racism that we needed to
engage in years ago are finally happening.
“There are Black
people that don’t
want to hear how
important voting
is because they’ve
already registered,
they voted, and
things are still the
same. “
I always stressed the importance of voting
to young Black and brown people because
I was taught that our ancestors died for us
to have this right and it would be a shame
not to use it.
However, Black people are continuously
being murdered at alarming rates. White
people have the privilege of making cute
Instagram posts on Canva entitled “Why
white Privilege is Bad” without having to
implement real change while Black people
continue to suffer.
This year has radicalized me and my
views in ways I could not have imagined.
I realized that telling marginalized groups
to vote because it’s “important” and their
“constitutional right” without giving them
the resources to make sure they make an
educated vote is the perfect example of
privilege.
There are Black people that don’t want
to hear how important voting is because
they’ve already registered, they voted, and
things are still the same.
An Instagram post entitled “Fun Facts
About Voting” sounds cute, but what about
implementing real change in our systems?
Sending in your ballot is great, but besides
that and sharing posts on your stories,
what else have you done? What else have
we done? What else can we do?
These were all points that I never took into
consideration until now because I thought
The images that come to mind when I
think about civic engagement are now
more than just voting. We need to be in
our own communities talking amongst our
neighbors, our elders, and our peers to get
to the bottom of the issues that lie right
underneath our noses.
We must volunteer and work to help our
own cities, towns, and boroughs become a
better place. We need to call our
representatives, let them know how we
feel about these issues, and demand to
know how they plan on taking action.
We need more young, Black people with
fresh and new ideas running for office; we
already know what hasn’t worked for our
people in the past, so we must look
forward and find out what does. And
finally, we need to mentor younger
generations to ensure they follow our lead.
37
YOUR SILENCE WILL NOT PROTECT YOU 36
A month before the 2020 US election, the
conversation about voting was sparked.
During my college years, I became more
vocal about issues affecting the Black
community, both externally and
internally, and one topic that became very
important to me was voting.
sending in my ballot whenever the
opportunity arises was me doing my part.
Regardless of the outcome of the 2020
election, our work in uplifting our own
communities is far from over.
You might feel that voting is only good in
theory, you might feel that running for
office will not work, but if you have the
resources, you must do something. For
others that do not have the access to these
resources, one must provide. Isn’t that the
supposed “American way” white people
are always talking about?
One thing that will keep us from moving
forward is sitting back and doing nothing.
We as Black people know that silence is
compliance and if you want to make a
change in this world, you must fight for it
in the best way you know how.
Black people have come so far, but we
have so much farther to go. Voting is a
great start in one’s civic engagement, but
we must do more. Our healthcare, our
neighborhoods, our schools, and our lives
are at stake.
I will always advocate for Black people
to vote but practicing this “constitutional
right” is only touching the surface.
Image found on the B|E note, photographer unknown
Group of young black women peacefully protesting
