"If you are disgusted by what you see, and if you feel the fire coursing through your veins, then it's up to you. You don't have to be the leader of a global movement or a household name. It can be as small scale as chipping away at the warped power relations in your workplace. It can be passing on knowledge and skills to those who wouldn't access them otherwise. It can be creative. It can be informal. It can be your job. It doesn't matter what it is, as long as you're doing something."
Why I'm No Longer Talking To White People About Race is such an eye-opening read. Reni affirmed so many feelings that I have had in my 21 years on their earth. She wrote with a determination to speak the truth and a willingness to educate those that wished to know more. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; I learnt things about British history which I never knew and uncovered details that I was never taught in school.
Reni suggested that as a race, we aren't ignorant of past British racial struggles by choice, but instead, we were being kept ignorant of our past. We have been led to believe that racism, police brutality and white privilege only happens in America. I was taught that Britain didn't have a civil rights movement, because there was no such thing as racism in Britain and I should consider myself lucky.
However, after reading this book, I have found this isn't the case. The past black struggle with racism is not bound to slavery between 1640 and 1807 or isolated to the streets of America. Instead, it is a very recent history and still present in the hearts and minds of my grandparents and my parents today.
Reni wrote about the abuse of power that police officers often took upon black people. This ranged from Sus Laws which provided the police with the power to stop, search and arrest anyone they thought looked suspicious to breaking into a black man's house, dragging him out of the shower, onto the street, beating him up and arresting him. Incidents like this were common and explains the present lack of trust between the black community and the police.
"The imagination of black Hermione's detractors can stretch to the possibility of a secret platform of King's Cross station that can only be accessed by running through a brick wall, but they can't stretch to a black central character."
I actually laughed so loud when I read this. It's funny because it's true and sometimes if you don't laugh, you'll cry. Fear of a Black Planet has to be my favourite chapter. Reni highlighted conversations I often have with my friends. For example, discussions of white being the default race and anything else must be explicitly stated to be recognised. It's shameful that we are living in the 21st century of a first world, multi-ethnic country and these things are still an issue.
"After four-year-old me came to terms with the fact that I could never turn white, I found refuge in white fictional British and American characters that I could relate to. For so long, that fictional heroic character loved by so many has been assumed to be white, because whiteness has been assumed to be universal. It is in film, television and books that we see the most potent manifestations of white as the default assumption. A character simply cannot be black without a pre-warning doe an assumed white audience. Black characters as leads are considered unrelatable..."
"But when you are used to white being the default, black isn't black unless it is clearly pointed out as so."
"We are told that black actors and actresses cast as central characters in works of fiction are unrealistic. We are told that they are historically inaccurate, or that they are too far a stretch of the imagination. But really, this is about a belligerent section of society that refuses to think outside of themselves, who believe that everything must cater to them and the rest of us must adapt to their whims and wishes."
Every single line Reni wrote from page 134 to 141 was as if she was speaking to me. As a bookworm and film lover, I have always found my home in one fictional world or the other. I know this has been a massive theme in my blogs for a while now; however, it's close to my heart.
When you are denied entry into this world, and you are automatically disqualified from taking the heroines place due to your ethnicity, it makes you start to feel as if there are no stories out there for you. As if you could never be the hero of your own story, let alone anyone else's.
But I am so pleased that the narrative is slowly beginning to change. Whiteness isn't the norm; it isn't universal; it isn't the global experience; it is neither higher nor lower than any other race on this planet. I hope that these facts are realised sooner rather than later; for the sake of future generations to come. But for that to happen, we must all take responsibility for the tone of the society we live in. I think that is the biggest take away from this book and it is one of the many things I loved so much about it.
I strongly encourage you to keep educating yourself on these topics. Google it, if you don't know something. Have uncomfortable conversations that allow you to grow. But always remember to treat people with kindness, respect and love. Be patient and we'll do this together.
