How Non-Black People Can Step Up As Allies

Gabriela Enamorado/Staff Writer

We as a country have gone through this too many times. 

This past week has been anything but quiet. In the light of George Floyd’s horrific death at the hands of police brutality, protests and riots have erupted across the United States. People have finally had enough of the injustice and are standing up for their rights. 

As we watch this unfold, many of us are left wondering how to help. If you’re a non-black person and consider yourself an ally to the Black Lives Matter movement, our activism must not stop at social media posts. To show true solidarity and allyship, we must do more. 

Non-black people must stand up at injustice and speak out. Using social media is effective in raising awareness, but we can expand past that. This includes combating anti-blackness in your own community, whether you’re white or a non-black person of color. 

In many non-black families, racism is rampant, and I’ve met plenty of other people of color who hold disgusting views on black people. Something we must do as non-black people is call out the racism in our families.

I’m a non-black Latina and like many other Latinxs, I know that racism against black people is ingrained in our community. If you’re not calling out your family when they say something racist then you’re being complacent. You’re not a true ally if you’re staying silent when your family or others around you are being racist. True activism starts at home. 

This includes educating any ignorant people around you. Educating others is crucial. We shouldn’t expect black people to do all the educating when they are the ones having to deal with the brutality head-on. It must be exhausting to constantly defend your movement and explain yourself to others. Take on this task by providing people with learning resources.

After these steps, you can go ahead and start listening and uplifting black voices. Many non-black people of color suffer injustice too, but right now we are focusing on Black Lives Matter and how black people suffer some of the worst consequences of police brutality, often leading to death. Don’t hijack the movement. If all you can think about is “but what about us?” you’re part of the problem.  

Another thing you can do is sign petitions. Signing petitions may seem small, but it does a lot for the movement. Petitions help by gathering the attention of political figures that have the power to change things. One petition that has gained a lot of traction is “Justice for George Floyd” on change.org. This petition, which calls for the termination and arrest of the officers involved in Floyd’s murder, has become one of the most signed petitions in the world.

 Protesting is one of the best ways to show everyone we are not backing down. We must use what privileges we have to help protect black folk at protests if and when we can. Stand on the frontlines in solidarity. If you can’t protest, make sure to donate money to help the protestors who have been arrested. You can donate to the Minneapolis Freedom Fund to help pay bail for the protestors. If you want something more local the organization Fempower also has a post bond fund for Miami. 

All these initiatives show unity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Non-black people need to cooperate to help end the disgusting racial injustice. This country will likely never be the same after this, nor will the way we talk about race. 

We will not let black voices go unheard any longer.

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