Dear (mostly) White sisters and brothers:
That is all.
(The photo meme above was found on the Coming to the Table Facebook site, a post by Van Caldwell.)
Except, that WAS NOT all.
Addendum: 11/24/16
An old friend, @artgarfunky, started a debate on Twitter.
So, as a Lyft driver, I sometimes hear White people from the suburbs talk to me about how Black people should "get their act together," or something along those lines. Often when this is said, that white person is sloppy drunk, not even sure where they need me to take them...so it feels like a "take the plank out of your own eye before judging the speck in your neighbor's eye." That was the spirit behind the original post.
But Phillip brings up a great pushback. If we build trust and respect, truly, than we can ALL speak into each other's lives, regardless of color. He's right. It's what I've learned with Marvin all these years, as we certainly do engage in iron-sharpening-iron types of conversations, mutually. It's the heart of why we are launching @TheTableSetters!
Still, too often, White people, both progressives and conservatives, want to tell Black people to act "better" without ever taking time to actually get to know the Black community. What it really means, usually, is that Black people need to act "more white." And this is one of the most persnickety and insidiously hidden forms of #Whiteousness.
Phillip, I hope we can sit a real table again soon!
@matthewjschmitt
+Matthew John Schmitt
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
That is all.
(The photo meme above was found on the Coming to the Table Facebook site, a post by Van Caldwell.)
Except, that WAS NOT all.
Addendum: 11/24/16
An old friend, @artgarfunky, started a debate on Twitter.
So, as a Lyft driver, I sometimes hear White people from the suburbs talk to me about how Black people should "get their act together," or something along those lines. Often when this is said, that white person is sloppy drunk, not even sure where they need me to take them...so it feels like a "take the plank out of your own eye before judging the speck in your neighbor's eye." That was the spirit behind the original post.
But Phillip brings up a great pushback. If we build trust and respect, truly, than we can ALL speak into each other's lives, regardless of color. He's right. It's what I've learned with Marvin all these years, as we certainly do engage in iron-sharpening-iron types of conversations, mutually. It's the heart of why we are launching @TheTableSetters!
Still, too often, White people, both progressives and conservatives, want to tell Black people to act "better" without ever taking time to actually get to know the Black community. What it really means, usually, is that Black people need to act "more white." And this is one of the most persnickety and insidiously hidden forms of #Whiteousness.
Phillip, I hope we can sit a real table again soon!
@matthewjschmitt
+Matthew John Schmitt
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
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