How to turn your existence into resistance
By Julia Berkman
As a town where 80 percent of the residents are white, Bellingham still has a lot to learn about interacting with racism. In an effort to change that, WWU Students for Anti-Racist Action (SARA) and the Bellingham activism community have come together to organize Protesting While White, an event designed to educate white people on how to be respectful during a People of Color (PoC)-led protest.
“In response to the frequency of cultural appropriation and lack of mindfulness of white folks at PoC-led actions in this community, many folks of color have expressed frustration and called for greater accountability from white activists and organizers,” Emma Bigongiari said. Bigongiari is a member of SARA and one of the main organizers of Protesting While White.
Last month at the March for Science, many activists of color at the event expressed their displeasure at the lack of inclusivity and self-awareness at the event.
The “Women of Color Speak Out” Seattle-based group sent a list of demands they wanted the March for Science to acknowledge as part of their platform. Their demands included sentiments such as “The scientific community must acknowledge that by staying silent for decades they have served the White Colonial Empire before the needs of humanity and nature,” along with other statements challenging the March to become more inclusive. The March for Science rejected their demands and moved forward with the march without support from PoC communities.
Because of all this, as well as the overwhelming cisgender whiteness of the Women’s March, SARA and People of Color from Bellingham’s organizing team for the People’s Climate March decided to create a workshop touching on whiteness during a protest.
“We will discuss things that white folks who want to be in solidarity with PoC should know, such as how to interact with the police (hint: don’t), learning to listen more and talk less, and coming to actions with the attitude of seriousness and solidarity, rather than just attending a march as a fun way to make yourself look better on social media,” said Bigongiari.
The event centers on how white people act during a protest that they may not have as much to do with. Let’s remember that racism is a struggle compounder, one that makes common issues (such as climate change, sexism or fair labor) more nuanced and layered. Anything that detrimentally affects a white person can also affect a person of color. For example, if you’re a black woman, you’re stuck in traffic at the intersection of sexism and racism, known as misogynoir.
Unfortunately, acknowledging privilege is a hard road for white people sometimes. This workshop is therefore a reminder to white folk that whatever affects them will affect people of color double. That’s why it’s up to white people at a protest to raise the voices of those more profoundly affected.
“We hope that this event will help white people to think critically about their role in People-of-Color led movements, and to spread what they learn to their friends and community members,” Bigongiari remarked.
The event will be held May 18 at 5:30 in Academic West 204. You can check it out online on Facebook.
ABOVE: Western students are no strangers to protests. Students banded together in protest of Western’s financial ties to U.S. Bank–one of the backers of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Photo by Erasmus Baxter.