The unfolding human tragedy in the Ukraine is being seen in real time on our televisions and mobile devices. Witnessing human suffering is always distressing. Make sure you check in on how you are feeling and be kind to yourself; do things you enjoy and take time out to care for yourself.
I want to particularly reach out to those of you who may have felt unseen, silenced, and dehumanised. The reporting on the Ukraine has exposed the acute racism that exists in the global media and seemingly among governments and populations across what we call the Western World, but which is actually those countries with white majority populations.
As someone who is not from the Western World, being unseen is not new. When disaster befalls people like me, both natural and human caused, the human tragedy is often ignored. Reporting, when it is present, feels like it is either to satisfy curiosity, or because of a connection to, or impact on, the ‘West’. Being silenced, sadly, is also not unfamiliar; even writing this article intended to offer care and love brings up anxious feelings about potential ramifications and my right to have a voice. To express myself I must push past my fear, and often do not have the strength or courage to do so. Expressing opinions on racial injustice often leads to accusations of disloyalty, ungratefulness, extremism and unacceptable anger.
What I am not used to is the explicit dehumanisation of people of colour (POC) in the mainstream. Raging racists have always been present, and the underlying superiority of ‘White’ people’s cultures and institutions has always been just under the surface. Seeing these sentiments expressed openly causes a new level of hopelessness. Hatred and racism are horrible, but the knowledge that in the past such sentiments have needed to be hidden offered some hope, some sense that things are improving or at least have the potential to improve. When the need to censor these sentiments disappears, when it becomes OK to express these ideas openly; that hope is shattered.
Hopelessness is soul destroying. It is dangerous and must be replaced with hope. Hope cannot be restored without struggling for justice, without acknowledging the realities around us and deliberately and intentionally trying to make things better. Most importantly, hope can only be restored after our feelings have been validated - not denied, not questioned, but accepted.
I want to say to my colleagues and community who are POC that I see you. I know the hurt that the words of people, even those people we don’t know or indeed care about, can cause and would like to validate your emotional experience. You have a right to feel whatever feelings are emerging. Your feelings, whatever they are, are legitimate - they deserve to be there, to be acknowledged, to be honoured. Please, be kind to yourself; call on those close to you and that you trust for support. I also acknowledge your resilience and strength in dealing with what is tactlessly called casual racism, the racism that targets, excludes and harms us on a daily basis. You will survive, you will endure
As a community, let’s all reach out and care for each other.