OPINION // CALLUM SKEFFINGTON
CALLUM SKEFFINGTON BLACK LIVES STILL MATTER. IT HAS BEEN THREE MONTHS since protests erupted throughout America after the murder of George Floyd. It is impossible to see the footage of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer without feeling anger at this utter disregard for human life, so understandably these protests swept across the world faster than COVID-19. Everyone shared their black squares of supportive ally-ship, and then the discussions surrounding the Black Lives Matter dwindled away; hashtags stopped trending and then it happened all over again on 23rd August when Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back by a police officer in Wisconsin. #BlackLivesMatter began back in 2012 after the death of Trayvon Martin; a seventeen year old boy who was shot by a member of a neighbourhood watch group in Florida, all because Trayvon ‘looked suspicious.’ The movement gained momentum in 2016 as regular instances of police brutality were being recorded and uploaded to social media. With heightened media attention, 2016 saw worldwide protests using the Black Lives Matter hashtag and campaigning for an end to racism across the world. Maybe you thought that the protests this year has been the first time that people, worldwide, have stood up in the face of racism. Maybe the quiet of lockdown made it seem as such. Maybe in our corner of the world we do not hear about the protests across America as much as we hear about sectarian violence or instances of
LGBT+ discrimination. But these protests have been happening year after year and they will continue until real changes begin across the world. It is an obvious fact that, throughout history, white people have used their power to withhold equality, dignity, and freedom from BIPOC. Sound familiar? The discrimination and injustices that racial minorities face are by no means the same as those we LGBT+ people face, however we should be able to relate to the frustrations, the anguish, and the need for support from others. We should be able to recognise that our desire for equality should not simply be a call for LGBT+ people being treated as equal; we of all people should be doing our part in campaigning for equality for all. We within the LGBT+ community say that society needs to move further away from homophobia and move towards tolerance, members of the LGBT+ community forget to practice that they preach. Transphobia and racism are very evident as some choose to discriminate against members of their own community. Trans people are fetishised, racist attitudes prevail and when challenged on the topic this is often dismissed as simply a ‘preference’. Monique Heart once said that ‘you can’t be black and gay,’ when referencing the difficulties she has faced as a black, gay drag queen, and I think that this is a simple statement that exemplifies the experiences of black LGBT people. I can’t even begin to imagine how exhausting it must be, being exposed to bigotry from all sides. Black queer people are burdened with the work of challenging homophobia within their Black communities, as well as taking up the fight against racism in all spaces. Whilst we have been fighting for marriage equality here in Northern Ireland over the past few years (and have finally reaped the rewards of this enduring campaign), black queer people were fighting for survival, and they still are. I may be part of the LGBT+ community but my race and my sexuality are mutually exclusive. My race does not invalidate the struggles I have faced due to the fact that I am a gay man, but my sexuality does not extinguish my privilege as a white, cis-gender man. We all need to make sure to do better and speak up against all forms of racial discrimination! We can not lose the unity that characterised the origins of our Pride movement.
Are we forgetting that Black transgender and queer people were on the front line for those six nights in the summer of 1969. It is about time we accept each other and treat each other with the respect that we would want ourselves. Black lives matter – now and always. Saying that Black lives matter does not make non-Black lives matter any less. Unless Black lives matter, all lives will not matter and therefore the campaign to end racial injustice will never be achieved. It is important to be an ally and support the message of Black Lives Matter. It is important to recognise the privilege you do have in order to recognise the injustices others face; privileges that we are not often made to think about but exempts us from the hardship of life that comes with being Black. You cannot expect the Black community, a community which has suffered for so long, to be the only ones trying to solve a problem that they did not create in the first place. It is only through coming together and joining forces that we can begin to ensure a better quality of life for Black people. Everyone must play a role in the fight. Racism exists here in Northern Ireland too, whether you want to admit it or not. Bringing awareness to this fact is important, but it is not enough; there are many ways in which we can be assisting the Black Lives Matter movement. Listen to the experiences of black people, listen to their stories recalled in their own voices and not relayed through news reports. Start the conversation and speak up, use your social media platform to spread the message, sign the online petitions, support anti-racist charities, but first and foremost you should be educating yourself. I have honestly learned so much just from researching the topic in order to write this column from an informed position, but in saying that I have only scratched the surface, and I have so much more to learn myself. If you’re tired of hearing about racism so much over the past days, just think how tired black people must be from facing it constantly. Twitter @callum_Skeff Website - catchingupwithcallum.com
This is an opinion piece from the columnist/contributor and not the opinion of GNI MAG / Romeo & Julian Publications Ltd.
THIRTEEN // GNIMAG.COM
