My Equity Statement
As a white-bodied cis-male, it would be all too easy for me to look the other way when it comes to equity, anti-racism, and anti-oppression work. While I’ve long seen myself as a justice-oriented person, I know that for much of my life, I wasn’t able to see the way that I took up space, silenced Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) voices, and otherwise harmed those around me. Since the murder of Michael Brown, I’ve been committed to understanding how I’ve caused harm (both in my personal life and professionally) and to playing my role in working to end oppression for all people. After all, my work is about helping people connect more deeply in their work and lives. There is no way to do that work without doing the work of understanding where I can cause harm, as well as regularly striving toward allyship in the fight to end oppression.
To that end, I want to name publically the commitments that I’ve made in my work and life. It is my commitment to:
Work to center voices of those most impacted by oppressive systems, including (but certainly not limited to): BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and disabled folks;
Continue to examine the ways my conditioning as a white-bodied cis male has led me to harm those most impacted by oppressive systems;
Organize within my communities to help carry the burden of anti-oppression work. e.g., Anti-racism work isn’t for BIPOC to take on alone;
Step aside on projects where my positionality isn’t the most necessary one to ensure that the right work is being done;
Make financial contributions to BIPOC, LGBTQ+, etc. organizations (e.g., I always contribute 20% of gross income on my Men Connecting: Understanding Whiteness to supporting the work of Holistic Resistance);
Not stand silent when harmful and/or hateful language is used in my presence, especially when people that can be directly harmed by that language are present.
It is my intention to utilize my positionality as much as possible to advance anti-racism and anti-oppression work. This is, of course, challenging, given that the world is designed to keep me and others like me from directly challenging these systems. This is why I stay in accountability with my teachers and mentors at Holistic Resistance, as well as other BIPOC folks. I’m bound to make mistakes; I get that. I’m committed to not turning away when I do but doing the necessary work to make it right.