Alright, listen up. I need to talk about something real, and it might make some folks uncomfortable. Good. Discomfort is where the learning happens.
This is for my fellow “melanin-ly challenged” folks out there, my white brothers and sisters. You’re feeling angry, maybe scared, maybe like the world is changing too fast and leaving you behind. You’ve retreated into your fortress, and you’re lobbing rocks at anyone who looks different. I get it. It feels safe in there.
But I’m asking you to do something difficult. Something brave. I’m asking you to get out of your corner and go meet your neighbors. Specifically, your Black neighbors.
Here’s a secret, one that isn’t really a secret at all if you’ve been paying attention: Black folks in this country have been navigating a system rigged against them for 400 years. They have a PhD in resilience. They have built strong communities, rich cultures, and profound joy in the face of unimaginable adversity. They are, frankly, great at surviving the kind of societal bullshit that is now making everyone else feel crazy.
You could do yourself, and your community, a massive favor by having the humility to go and listen. Not to debate, not to defend, but to learn. Walk into their churches, their community centers, their businesses. Bring your honest questions, bring your willingness to be uncomfortable, but leave your fear and your pre-conceived notions at the door.
And I’m going to promise you two things will happen.
First, you’re going to eat some of the best food of your life. Second, you are going to get humbled. Oh, are you going to get humbled.
And here’s the part you need to understand: that’s the best part. When they start roasting you, when they’re making fun of your clothes, or the way you talk, or your complete inability to understand the rules of Spades… that is not an attack. That is an invitation. That is the signal that they are letting their guard down. That’s how you know you’re “in.” They can be ruthless, but it’s a ruthlessness that is often fun, a sign that you are now part of the community, part of the joke. It’s a test of your own self-awareness, and laughing at yourself is the fastest and most honest way to build a real bridge.
Now, to my Black brothers and sisters. I know you are tired. Deep-in-your-bones tired. Tired of being the teachers, tired of explaining, tired of extending grace to people who haven’t earned it. I get it.
But I’m asking you to consider this moment, too. There are white folks out there who are genuinely trying to understand, who are looking for a way off the hamster wheel of hate they’ve been put on.
When they show up, all awkward and hesitant and saying the wrong damn thing… I’m asking you to teach them. Be yourselves. Be fun. And yeah, be a little ruthless. Show them that “community” isn’t some sterile, boring, politically correct word; it’s a real, vibrant, and challenging place to be.
This isn’t about being “woke.” This is about being human. It’s how we break down the stereotypes, starve the dogmas, and build communities that are strong not just despite our differences, but because of them.
This is the way back. This is how we build a new tolerance, a lasting understanding. It’s the work. Let’s get to it.