a tale of racial imposter syndrome
In the Salt Lake City suburb where I grew up, surrounded by whiteness and conservative values, when my “friends” called me an Oreo, I thought this was a good thing. They were saying I was like them, right? White on the inside?
i want: a poem for today
When I witness fear and violence enacted against Black and brown bodies, it rattles my body. I do not jump to action, I swim in feeling. I process through writing and being in the natural world. Only after I’ve taken the time to understand how my body is impacted — feel its contractions, tension and strain and taken care of what is needed — can I move with my full self into what’s next.
burn it down
We’re standing with our feet in the fire. The natural tendency is to want to put the flames out — reach for the bucket, stop feeling and start doing. While that may alleviate some pain in the short term, engaging in actions to push away feelings of “less than” is a tool that systems of inequity use to keep internalized structures of oppression intact. Our suffering becomes our fault.