Consider reading Robin DiAngelo’s “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism”. This text could also make an interesting book study.
By Rev. Chris Brouillard-Coyle
BY THE TIME folks receive this edition of the Huron Church News, most will have packed their Christmas decorations away for the year, leaving behind the festivities, at least until society prematurely invites us to engage in Christmas in July and then starts with early Christmas promotions in the fall.
Christmas features heavily into our culture. It includes an entire season of decorations, movies, television specials, music, commercials, and more. There is something comforting about the extent to which our celebration of Christmas feels almost universal.
Except, it isn’t, universal that is.
There are other celebrations that happen at the same time as Christmas. Could we imagine living in a world where Christmas was overshadowed? Could we imagine living in a world where, say, Hannukah was the dominant December celebration? Could we imagine a world where menorahs were featured beginning in the fall and commercials pitched a plethora of Hannukah presents throughout the season. What would it be like to live in a world where there was Hannukah music on the radio playing non-stop for weeks, and Hannukah movies on television and in theatres? What would it be like to live in a world where people insisted on saying Happy Hannukah and got offended when you responded Happy Holidays because you celebrate Christmas and want to respect the fact, they celebrate Hannukah but also want to feel acknowledged that you are celebrating something important to you?
We don’t realize how much Christmas overshadows the celebrations of others because it has become so normalized, such a dominant part of our culture. We have been tricked into believing that this is something important to everyone. We may be shocked to learn that is not the case.
Christmas is not the only aspect of our being that is so dominant and normalized that it overshadows the realities of others. There are privileges associated with being white, cisgender, heterosexual, male, middle aged, able bodied, and neurotypical that can distract us from recognizing the challenges marginalized individuals face each day.
We can count ourselves lucky if we have never had people assume we are criminals simply because of the colour of our skin. We are lucky if we don’t have to think about accessibility when we travel around any region. We are lucky if we feel safe walking alone at night. We are lucky if we don’t have to think twice about whether or not to show affection to our partner in public. We are lucky if we feel comfortable being our full selves in any and every context. This is not the case for everyone.
Our Marks of Mission include transforming unjust structures of society, challenging violence of every kind, and pursuing peace and reconciliation. There are unjust structures of society from which we benefit whether we are aware of these or not. One step to working towards transforming the unjust structures of society is to understand the ways privilege is related to these.
As we know, February is Black History Month. We need a Black History Month because one of the unjust structures of society is that it is the stories of white Western men that dominate in the education system. We need to hear other perspectives, hear other stories, to create space for a deeper understanding of our interrelatedness and the unequal realities that continue.
There will be lots of important opportunities for education during the month of February. Note that the contributions of Black individuals to this education is emotional labour and needs to be acknowledged and compensated. There is work non-Black individuals can do as well. Consider, for example, reading Robin DiAngelo’s “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism”. This text could also make an interesting book study.
The key is for those who hold privilege to humbly listen and learn about what this looks like and what this means in regard to the unjust structures of society. And then, to use that privilege to transform those unjust structures as we are able.
May we each have the courage and grace to enter into this work this month and throughout the year.
Rev. Chris Brouillard-Coyle is a co-chair of SEJH.