Recommended Reading

I have to credit this moving piece for inspiring the piece I posted this morning. Fighting against oppression when you're the one who's oppressed carries so much more emotion than just simple anger. That anger is mixed with despair and depression and fear and grief.

Dear White People: Ferguson Protests are a Wake Not a Pep Rally

This piece was written by a black man whose name appears to be Aaron Goggans. Here's an excerpt:

Like Brittney Cooper said, “I am undone.” In these moments, when the despair feels like it’s ripping me apart, only the solidarity of other Black people gives me real solace. It’s the moments when a co-worker and I randomly catch each other’s eyes and we both see the pain, and the fear, and the exhaustion and one of us says “shits f%$” and we both laugh. We laugh because it’s all we can do. We laugh because sometimes the pain is too much to bear. We laugh because screaming might get us fired. We laugh so that we don’t cry.

The whole piece is amazing and essential reading for white people who want to be doing ally work over this issue.